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Of all kava's activities
in the human body, its effectiveness as a sedative seems
the key to the rapidly increasing popularity of this
plant and its preparations. Early in my kava research,
it became evident that the plant holds great promise for
the mitigation of three of the most common health
disorders of our time: anxiety, depression, and
sleeplessness.
While it would be
impractical to attempt to establish kava bars in the
United States using fresh kava as in Vanuatu, it is
completely practical to make, on a large scale,
efficacious preparations of kava to promote a feeling of
peace and tranquility. Clearly, the need exists.
Kava's efficacy has been
amply demonstrated. In a 1977 double-blind,
placebo-controlled study of eighty-four patients
suffering from anxiety, a daily dose of 400 milligrams
of purified kavain improved vigilance, memory, and
reaction time.
Though kava's promotion of a good night's sleep is
thoroughly well documented throughout history and is
corroborated by the anecdotal accounts of numerous avid
daily kava drinkers, a 1979 study showed that
administration of kavalactones to humans does indeed
induce sedation (a relaxed easy state) and sleepiness.
In a 1990 study of
thirty-eight patients suffering from anxiety, kavain and
oxazepam, a benzodiazepine marketed under the trade name
Serax, were compared over a period of four weeks. Both
reduced symptoms of anxiety equally as measured by both
the SelfRating Anxiety Scale and the Anxiety Status
Inventory. However, unlike kavain, oxazepam is addictive
and produces side effects such as drowsiness, dizziness,
headaches, and vertigo. This study made it clear that
kavalactones possess anti-anxiety activity comparable to
the benzodiazepines, but without the hazards.
In a 1991 four-week study
of fifty-eight patients suffering from anxiety,
twenty-nine were given 100 milligrams of a 70 percent
kavalactone extract three times daily, whereas the
control group was given a placebo. Those who took the
kava extract experienced significant reduction in
anxiety after just one week, and were markedly improved
at the end of the study. As with other studies, no
adverse effects were reported as a result of the kava
use.
In an eight-week, 1991
study of forty women with menopausal symptoms, twenty
women were given a daily dose of 100 milligrams of kava
extract standardized to a 70% kavalactone value, and
twenty were given a placebo. The group given the kava
experienced a significant reduction in menopausal
symptoms, anxiety, and depression, whereas the control
group experienced no significant change.
In a 1993 study of twelve
volunteers, the effects of a standardized kava extract
and oxazepam on mental function were compared. Using
several parameters, oxazepam was shown to decrease both
the quality and speed of responses to test questions,
whereas the kava extract did not adversely affect mental
function. In a word recognition test, oxazepam slowed
reaction time and reduced the number of correct answers,
whereas the kava extract slightly increased reaction
time and recognition. This supports the oft-repeated
claim of kava users that even when enough kava is
consumed to induce a significantly relaxed, easy state,
there is no impairment of mental function, including
memory or clarity of thought.
In a battery of tests
given to forty subjects in 1993, kava extract
administered to volunteers did not impair their
performance driving an automobile or operating heavy
machinery. Unlike alcohol or the benzodiazepines, kava
taken in appropriate doses does not impair coordination,
visual perception, or judgment.
Unlike the
benzodiazepines, kava's effectiveness does not diminish
over time. Whereas a person taking Valium, Xanax, or
oxazepam may need to increase their daily dose over time
to achieve the same anti-anxiety effect, a dose of kava
that works to control anxiety today will work equally
well two years from now.
It is clear that kava
offers a safe, effective alternative to prescription
drugs for anxiety and insomnia, and that kava can in
some cases provide relief for depression. So the
question is, how much kava does one take? The most
significant anti-anxiety studies show that an effective
daily dose of kava is 70-210 milligrams of kavalactones.
In the 1991 anxiety study
of fifty-eight patients described above, the effective
dose of kava was 70 milligrams of kavalactones taken
three times daily. In the 1991 study of menopausal women
cited above, the dose was 70 milligrams of kavalactones
daily. To promote sleep, a dose of approximately 150-200
milligrams of kavalactones taken thirty to sixty minutes
prior to retiring is recommended.
A study of Fijian kava
found that the average coconut shell of kava beverage
contains approximately 250 milligrams of kavalactones. I
assume that a shell of Vanuatu kava yields a greater
amount than that, given the consistently higher potency
of kava from Vanuatu. It is conceivable, then, that a
person drinking kava in Vanuatu at the rate of three to
five shells is consuming somewhere between 750 and 2000
milligrams of kavalactones in an evening. That is a
whopping amount. No wonder I felt the effects of kava
very strongly when drinking at the nakamals.
Prior to my trip to the
islands, I became aware of the fact that kava producing
companies in Europe were having an increasingly
difficult time obtaining supplies of high quality kava
for extraction. If I was going to bring kava to the
United States as an alternative to costly, prescription
anti-anxiety drugs and sleeping pills that caused
deleterious side effects, I would have to find an
excellent, high-volume supply of mature, potent kava. I
already knew that my contacts in Santo would yield a
good amount of kava on a consistent basis. The next
thing to do was to go see the Tahitian, and find out
what the supply situation was out on the island of
Pentecost.
Excerpted from "Kava:
Medicine Hunting in Paradise" by Chris Kilham |
