Origins Of Kava - Piper Methysticum
Other Common Names: Ava Intoxicating Pepper, Ava Pepper, Kava Kava, Yagona, Piper methysticum
Range: Polynesia, Sandwich Islands, South Sea Islands. Official in the Australian Colonies.
The first Europeans to observe the kava plant and its ritualistic
consumption by natives of Oceania were Dutch explorers Jacob Le Maire
and William Schouten. In 1616, they encountered the plant in the Hoorn
Islands, now a part of the French territory Wallis and Fatuna. Later
travelers in the Pacific region provided a wealth of detail regarding
this highly valued and widely used pepper plant.
Long cultivated and known by a number of common names, the plant is
now classified by botanists as Piper methysticum, meaning "intoxicating
pepper." In religious and social rituals that naturally vary somewhat
from island to island, the rhizome of the plant is grated (originally
chewed by young people with sound teeth), mixed with water in a bowl,
strained, and the resulting beverage drunk to produce a feeling of
well-being.
Observers and even scientists long disagreed on the effects of kava.
Captain James Cook, who observed its use during his world voyage of
1768?1771, thought the symptoms resembled those of opium. Lewis Lewin,
a pioneer pharmacologist in the field of mind-altering drugs, referred
to it in the 1880s as a narcotic and sedative, but noted these effects
followed a period of quiet euphoria. Modern authorities call kava a
psychoactive agent; it reduces anxiety much like the potent, synthetic
benzodiazapines (e.g., Valium) and is a potent muscle relaxant. Kava
does promote relaxation and sociability, but its effects are very
different from those produced by either alcohol or synthetic
tranquilizers. It does not produce a hangover, and, even more
significant, it does not cause dependency or addiction.
In the 1950s and 60s, two teams of German scientists headed by H.J.
Meyer in Freiburg and R. H?nsel in Berlin found that the various
activities of the kava plant were due to some 15 different chemical
compounds known as pyrones. Collectively named kavapyrones or
kavalactones, the compounds were found to increase the sedative action
of barbiturates, to have both analgesic and local anesthetic effects,
to cause muscles to relax, and to have antifungal properties.
Kava root has been found valuable in the treatment of Neuralgia,
particularly of the trifacial nerve, toothache, earache, ocular pain,
reflex neuralgia, anorexia, gonorrhoea both acute and chronic,
vaginitis, leucorrhoea, nocturnal incontinence and other ailments of
the genitourinary tract. Being a local anaesthetic it relieves pain and
has an aphrodisiac effect; it has also an antiseptic effect on the
urine. The capsules usually contain 0.3 gram; two to four can be given
several times per day. As Kava is a strong diuretic it is useful for
gout, rheumatism, bronchial and other ailments, resulting from heart
trouble.
Shortly after these findings, preparations of kava extract began to
appear on the European market, usually standardized to provide a daily
dosage in the range of 60?120 mg of kavapyrones. German Commission E,
the group responsible for evaluating the safety and efficacy of
botanical medicines, reviewed the data on kava and, in 1990, approved
its use for conditions such as nervous anxiety, stress, and
restlessness. It is frequently marketed as an anxiolytic.
Kava products have been steady but unspectacular sellers in Europe
for several decades. Until recently, no one in the United States seemed
much interested in them. Ironically, when the Food and Drug
Administration began to express concern over the safety of ephedra,
a stimulant herbal product, herb marketers became enthusiastic about
kava, a depressant. Both herbs have psychoactive properties, but the
effects are almost exactly opposite.
Kava and its contained pyrones are, without question, effective
medications. They are also subject to abuse. The kava scenario in this
country is just beginning. It is too early to predict whether it will
continue to be marketed freely or will eventually be subjected to rigid
controls.
Known Hazards: Use of kava is contraindicated during
pregnancy, nursing, and in cases of depression caused by internal
factors. Its continued use in large doses causes inflammation of the
body and eyes, resulting in leprous ulcers; the skin becomes parched
and peels off in scales.
Long-term consumption of very large quantities of kava may result in
a yellow coloration of the skin, nails, and hair, allergic skin
reactions, visual and oculomotor equilibrium disturbances. For this
reason, Commission E recommends that kava not be consumed for longer
than 3 months without medical advice. Driving and operating machinery
during consumption should be avoided.
Other Common Names: Ava Intoxicating Pepper, Ava Pepper, Kava Kava, Yagona, Piper methysticum
Range: Polynesia, Sandwich Islands, South Sea Islands. Official in the Australian Colonies.
The first Europeans to observe the kava plant and its ritualistic
consumption by natives of Oceania were Dutch explorers Jacob Le Maire
and William Schouten. In 1616, they encountered the plant in the Hoorn
Islands, now a part of the French territory Wallis and Fatuna. Later
travelers in the Pacific region provided a wealth of detail regarding
this highly valued and widely used pepper plant.
Long cultivated and known by a number of common names, the plant is
now classified by botanists as Piper methysticum, meaning "intoxicating
pepper." In religious and social rituals that naturally vary somewhat
from island to island, the rhizome of the plant is grated (originally
chewed by young people with sound teeth), mixed with water in a bowl,
strained, and the resulting beverage drunk to produce a feeling of
well-being.
Observers and even scientists long disagreed on the effects of kava.
Captain James Cook, who observed its use during his world voyage of
1768?1771, thought the symptoms resembled those of opium. Lewis Lewin,
a pioneer pharmacologist in the field of mind-altering drugs, referred
to it in the 1880s as a narcotic and sedative, but noted these effects
followed a period of quiet euphoria. Modern authorities call kava a
psychoactive agent; it reduces anxiety much like the potent, synthetic
benzodiazapines (e.g., Valium) and is a potent muscle relaxant. Kava
does promote relaxation and sociability, but its effects are very
different from those produced by either alcohol or synthetic
tranquilizers. It does not produce a hangover, and, even more
significant, it does not cause dependency or addiction.
In the 1950s and 60s, two teams of German scientists headed by H.J.
Meyer in Freiburg and R. H?nsel in Berlin found that the various
activities of the kava plant were due to some 15 different chemical
compounds known as pyrones. Collectively named kavapyrones or
kavalactones, the compounds were found to increase the sedative action
of barbiturates, to have both analgesic and local anesthetic effects,
to cause muscles to relax, and to have antifungal properties.
Kava root has been found valuable in the treatment of Neuralgia,
particularly of the trifacial nerve, toothache, earache, ocular pain,
reflex neuralgia, anorexia, gonorrhoea both acute and chronic,
vaginitis, leucorrhoea, nocturnal incontinence and other ailments of
the genitourinary tract. Being a local anaesthetic it relieves pain and
has an aphrodisiac effect; it has also an antiseptic effect on the
urine. The capsules usually contain 0.3 gram; two to four can be given
several times per day. As Kava is a strong diuretic it is useful for
gout, rheumatism, bronchial and other ailments, resulting from heart
trouble.
Shortly after these findings, preparations of kava extract began to
appear on the European market, usually standardized to provide a daily
dosage in the range of 60?120 mg of kavapyrones. German Commission E,
the group responsible for evaluating the safety and efficacy of
botanical medicines, reviewed the data on kava and, in 1990, approved
its use for conditions such as nervous anxiety, stress, and
restlessness. It is frequently marketed as an anxiolytic.
Kava products have been steady but unspectacular sellers in Europe
for several decades. Until recently, no one in the United States seemed
much interested in them. Ironically, when the Food and Drug
Administration began to express concern over the safety of ephedra,
a stimulant herbal product, herb marketers became enthusiastic about
kava, a depressant. Both herbs have psychoactive properties, but the
effects are almost exactly opposite.
Kava and its contained pyrones are, without question, effective
medications. They are also subject to abuse. The kava scenario in this
country is just beginning. It is too early to predict whether it will
continue to be marketed freely or will eventually be subjected to rigid
controls.
Known Hazards: Use of kava is contraindicated during
pregnancy, nursing, and in cases of depression caused by internal
factors. Its continued use in large doses causes inflammation of the
body and eyes, resulting in leprous ulcers; the skin becomes parched
and peels off in scales.
Long-term consumption of very large quantities of kava may result in
a yellow coloration of the skin, nails, and hair, allergic skin
reactions, visual and oculomotor equilibrium disturbances. For this
reason, Commission E recommends that kava not be consumed for longer
than 3 months without medical advice. Driving and operating machinery
during consumption should be avoided.
- Tyler, V.E. 1999. Herbs affecting the central nervous system. p.
442?449. In: J. Janick (ed.), Perspectives on new crops and new uses.
ASHS Press, Alexandria, VA.
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