Nature Pacific PTY LTD. (2004). Kava Kava. Retrieved from: http://www.naturepacific.com/contents/en-us/d59_kava.html
Botanical Name: Piper methysticum
Common name: Kava Kava
Family: Piperaceae
Parts used: Rhizome
Folklore and traditional use: Kava kava root prepared as a beverage has a long history of use in welcoming ceremonies in the Pacific Islands (Braun & Cohen, 2005, p. 246).
Kava kava has been used both medicinally and ceremoniallyy in the Pacific region (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456).
- In Fiji it is used to treat bladder and kidney disease, as a diuretic, for coughs, colds and a sore throat.
- In Samoa the root is used to treat gonorrhea.
- In Hawaii it use to be used to treat skin disorders, to sooth nerves, induce sleep, to treat general debility, colds and chills.
- In traditional Polynesian medicine it was used topically to treat skin disease, leprosy.
- In Western herbal medicine, kava was indicated in a range of genitourinary tract ailments, such as gonorrhea, vaginitis and nocturnal incontinence.
- The Eclectics recommended kava for neuralgia, toothache, earache, ocular pain, dizziness, despondency, anorexia, dyspepsia, intestinal catarrh, hemorrhoids and renal colic.
(Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
Constituents:
- Resin containing 6-stytly-4-methoxy-alpha-pyrone derivatives also known as ‘kava lactones’ or ‘kava pyrones’ including:
- kavain
- Dehydrokavain (DHK)
- Methysticin
- Dihydromethysticin
- Yangonin
- Desmethoxyyangonin
- Flavonoids (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 457)
Actions
- Anxiolytic (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456; Bone, 2003, p. 291)
- Hypnotic (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456; Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Mild sedative (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Skeletal muscle relaxant (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Local anesthetic (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456; Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Mild analgesic (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Relaxing nervine (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Antispasmodic (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Antifungal (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Anticonvulsant (Bone, 2003, p. 291)
Indications
- General Anxiety Disorder (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456; Braun & Cohen, 2005, p. 246)
- Nervous tension (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Restlessness (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Mild depression (of non-psychotic origin) (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Menopausal Symptoms (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 456)
- Insomnia (Braun & Cohen, 2005, p. 247)
- Hoffmann suggests that kava is good for anxiety without dampening alertness (administered at a normal therapeutic dose) (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Comparable to benzodiazepines in the treatment of anxiety, without the side effects (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573) this also suggests kava kava’s benefit in the withdrawal of benzodiazepine drugs (Braun & Cohen, 2005, p. 247).
- Does not impair reaction time, and appears to improve concentration (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
Preparation & Dosage: Commission E recommends preparations equivalent to 20-120mg of kavalactones/tds (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
Cautions
- A side effect of over consumption referred to as “kava dermopathy”, manifests as a skin rash, non-inflammatory dryness and scaling of skin. This is most often seen with heavy, long-term consumers. However this was also observed in clinical trials with doses of 300-800mg of isolated constituent dihydromethystici (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573).
- Hepatotoxicity has been reported, leading to restrictions in availability in some countries (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
- Caution to be taken in elderly individuals with Parkinson’s disease due to potential dopamine antagonism (Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 452)
- Liver conditions (Bone, 2003, p. 291)
Contradictions:
According to Commission E Kava kava is contraindicated in:
- Pregnancy
- Lactation
- Endogenous depression
(Bone & Mills, 2010, p. 462)
Interactions: May increase effects of substances that act upon the central nervous system (alcohol, barbiturates, psycopharmaceutical agents) (Hoffmann, 2003, p. 573)
