Many people like to eat candied haws, hawthorn, etc. before a meal, thinking that the sweet and sour hawthorn can whet the appetite. In fact, this is wrong. It is best not to eat too much hawthorn on an empty stomach.
Hawthorn is sour and can be used to relieve indigestion and alleviate stagnation. However, because of its sour taste, eating it on an empty stomach can easily damage the spleen and stomach. For healthy people, the stomach is already empty before a meal, and eating hawthorn is a stimulation to the stomach. Over time, it may lead to excessive gastric acid secretion and even cause unnecessary stomach pain. People with stomach diseases, such as hyperchlorhydria, gastritis, gastric ulcer, reflux gastritis, and reflux esophagitis, are not suitable for eating hawthorn on an empty stomach. For people with a weak spleen and stomach, it is generally recommended to eat less hawthorn. People with cavities, especially children, should not eat too much as it can easily damage teeth. At the same time, because hawthorn can deplete energy, people with a weak constitution should also avoid eating too much.
Of course, for healthy and strong individuals, it is fine to eat hawthorn after a meal to aid digestion, especially after being overly full from greasy meat. The effect of using hawthorn to aid digestion is very good in such cases.