{"id":197701,"date":"2025-09-10T15:03:04","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T14:03:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.herbalreality.com\/?post_type=herb&p=197701"},"modified":"2025-09-10T15:05:13","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T14:05:13","slug":"kava","status":"publish","type":"herb","link":"https:\/\/www.herbalreality.com\/herb\/kava\/","title":{"rendered":"Kava"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":197729,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","beyondwords_generate_audio":"1","beyondwords_project_id":"47224","beyondwords_content_id":"10c4c1e3-eadf-47cd-9e7c-258303e641e6","beyondwords_preview_token":"e8a43680-1f77-4242-8c06-c5ae54863c73","beyondwords_player_content":"","beyondwords_player_style":"","beyondwords_language_code":"","beyondwords_language_id":"","beyondwords_title_voice_id":"","beyondwords_body_voice_id":"","beyondwords_summary_voice_id":"","beyondwords_error_message":"","beyondwords_disabled":"","beyondwords_delete_content":"","beyondwords_podcast_id":"","beyondwords_hash":"","publish_post_to_speechkit":"","speechkit_hash":"","speechkit_generate_audio":"","speechkit_project_id":"","speechkit_podcast_id":"","speechkit_error_message":"","speechkit_disabled":"","speechkit_access_key":"","speechkit_error":"","speechkit_info":"","speechkit_response":"","speechkit_retries":"","speechkit_status":"","speechkit_updated_at":"","_speechkit_link":"","_speechkit_text":""},"tags":[1996,1995,1997],"conditions":[699,696,697],"sustainability":[1576],"sense":[31,18,1820],"western_action":[990,992,1008,1015,1017,1018,1019],"chinese_action":[],"ayurvedic_action":[],"energetics_action":[1499,1498,1488,1497,1490,1380],"region":[1893],"class_list":["post-197701","herb","type-herb","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-antithrombotic","tag-antitumour","tag-muscle-relaxant","conditions-musculoskeletal-system","conditions-nervous-system","conditions-urinary-system","sustainability-green-sustainability-status","sense-astringent-taste","sense-bitter","sense-pungent","western_action-analgesic","western_action-anti-inflammatory","western_action-diuretic","western_action-immunomodulant","western_action-nervine","western_action-relaxant","western_action-sedative","energetics_action-astringent","energetics_action-bitter","energetics_action-moist","energetics_action-pungent","energetics_action-relaxing","energetics_action-warm","region-western-herbs"],"acf":{"last_reviewed":"20250910","herb_author":null,"banner_text":"Kava relieves anxiety and aids relaxation","latin_name":"Piper methysticum<\/em>","pseudonym_name":"","family_name":"Piperaceae","herb_summary":"Kava is a root from the Pacific Islands that is effective to relieve tension and anxiety, but is banned in the UK and EU.","key_benefits":"Anxiolytic\r\nMild sedative\r\nAnalgesic with local anaesthetic effect\r\nMmuscle relaxant\r\nAnti-inflammatory\r\nAnticonvulsant\r\nAnti-ischaemic","how_does_it_feel":"Kava has a silky, soapy texture and produces an immediate numbing effect in the mouth. The water-extract of kava is bitter and slightly acrid.<\/span>","hdif_image_1":197731,"hdif_image_2":197735,"hdif_image_3":197733,"hdif_video":"","sense":[31,18,1820],"what_can_i_use_it_for":"Kava is mainly used for its relaxing properties to reduce anxiety and tension, aid with sleep, and to promote a feeling of wellbeing and socialising. It is particularly effective to relieve nervous tension and restlessness (1,2), and research has shown potential for kava to be neuroprotective via reducing oxidative stress and inflammation (3).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nIt is bitter and has <\/span>analgesic<\/span><\/a>, muscle relaxant, <\/span>anti-inflammatory<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>diuretic<\/span><\/a> properties, so has been used historically to treat <\/span>bronchitis<\/span><\/a>, rheumatism, toothache, <\/span>urinary tract infections<\/span><\/a>, dyspepsia, dysuria, nocturia and neuralgia (4).<\/span>","into_the_heart_of":"[caption id=\"attachment_197729\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"511\"]\"Kava Kava (Piper methysticum<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nKava has been used in traditional South Pacific cultures for more than 2000 years. It plays a role in formal ceremonies in Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji and Pohnpei, where it is exchanged and consumed to promote connection through its ability to relax and provide a sense of wellbeing (5). Kava is traditionally served during significant events, such as weddings and to welcome guests, and kava is exchanged as a gift on special occasions and to ask for forgiveness (6). The relaxing effects have led to it being used as an alternative to benzodiazepines to treat <\/span>anxiety<\/span><\/a> (1).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nDespite being banned in the UK and EU, kava is available in Australasia, the Pacific Islands and the US. Kava bars, in which kava is drunk socially, originated in New Caledonia, but are now found in Hawaii, other Pacific islands and across the US. The ability of kava to promote communication alongside relaxation has led to it being a desirable alternative to alcohol.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWhile kava is mainly known for its relaxing effects on the nervous system, low rates of cancer in men in the Pacific combined with <\/span>in vitro <\/span><\/i>studies have shown that it may have an antitumour effect (6).<\/span>","tradtional_uses":"[caption id=\"attachment_197734\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"510\"]\"Kava Kava root (Piper methysticum<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nTraditionally the dried root and basal stump is pounded, chewed or grated, then made into a cold-water infusion in a wooden bowl known as a <\/span>kumete<\/span><\/i>. During a ceremony or kava-drinking session, kava is served in cups made from half coconut shells known as <\/span>bilo<\/span><\/i> or <\/span>ipu<\/span><\/i> (1,7). More than three litres of the cold-water infusion are typically drunk per person during a six-hour <\/span>faikava<\/span><\/i> (kava-drinking) session, during which there are established cultural protocols (1).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nIn the Pacific Islands, kava drinking was once reserved for male royalty and priests during rituals on social, ceremonial and religious occasions, as well as being used medicinally. Since around the 1970s or 80s, however, it has expanded to be used throughout the population for social and relaxation purposes, and to help with anxiety and sleep (8). Kava is so much a part of the culture of many Pacific Islands, that the flag of the state of Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia has a kava cup in the centre, and the watermark on Western Samoa's paper currency was a ceremonial kava bowl (9).<\/span>\r\n\r\nWhen used over a long period of time, kava causes a scaly dermopathy, which has been utilised by healers in Pacific Islands to treat other skin complaints such as fungal infections and psoriasis. Healers advised people to drink kava until they developed kava dermopathy, then when the kava was stopped and the scales shed away, the original skin condition would also resolve (9).<\/span>","what_practioners_say":"

\"NervousNervous system<\/h3>\r\nKava is most commonly used for its sedative and anxiolytic effects, and kavalactones have been found to interact with the GABAergic system (10). Low micromolar concentrations of kavalactones enhance the binding of ligands to the GABA<\/span>A<\/span> receptor, but they don't bind directly to the benzodiazepine binding site (7). Kavalactones also inhibit voltage-gated ion channels (Na<\/span>+<\/span> and Ca<\/span>+2<\/span>), block the reuptake of noradrenaline, and inhibit monoamine oxidase (MAO)<\/span>B<\/span> (7).\u00a0 These actions are likely to contribute to anxiolytic and sedative effects, as well as the local anaesthetic effect observed when kava is consumed.<\/span>\r\n\r\nKavalactones such as kavain have been found to have a neuroprotective effect. This is likely due to blocking of voltage-gated ion channels, as well as activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2), which controls detoxifying antioxidant enzymes and is involved in the regulation of inflammation (3,7).<\/span>\r\n\r\nBefore the kava ban in 2002, the German E-commission monograph recommended kava for \"nervous anxiety, tension and restlessness\", and an observational trial of 156 patients found significant and clinically significant benefits in these conditions (2).<\/span>\r\n

Musculoskeletal system<\/h3>\r\nKava has muscle relaxing and analgesic effects, which explains its history of use in rheumatism. The kavalactone kavain has been found to inhibit cyclooxygenase (COX) enzyme, contributing to an <\/span>anti-inflammatory<\/span><\/a> effect. A direct <\/span>analgesic<\/span><\/a> effect that occurs in the mouth on drinking kava contributes to its use for neuralgia and potential use in dentistry.<\/span>\r\n

Urinary system<\/h3>\r\nKava is a <\/span>diuretic<\/span><\/a> and has been found to relieve the burning and pain from urinary tract infections (4).<\/span>","research":"[caption id=\"attachment_197735\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"514\"]\"Kava Kava root (Piper methysticum<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n

Medicinal herbs for the treatment of anxiety: A systematic review and network meta-analysis<\/h3>\r\nA systematic review and meta-analysis of 12 medicinal herbs found that kava was an effective and well-tolerated anxiolytic, but may not be effective in patients with generalized anxiety disorder. The use of kava to reduce anxiety was consistent with an interaction of kava with the GABA<\/span>A<\/span> receptor, as well as its ability to block voltage-gated cation channels and suppress thromboxane A2 synthesis (11).<\/span>\r\n

Neuroimaging insights: Kava's (Piper methysticum) effect on dorsal anterior cingulate cortex GABA in generalized anxiety disorder<\/h3>\r\nAdministration of kava extract (standardised to 120mg kavalactones twice daily) for 8 weeks reduced levels of GABA neurotransmitter in the dorsal anterior cingulate area of the brain. GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that reduces excitation in the brain and is often raised in specific areas of the brains of those with anxiety (10).<\/span>\r\n

The impact of traditional kava (Piper methysticum) use on cognition: Implications for driver fitness<\/h3>\r\nThe cognitive function of 20 kava drinkers during a traditional <\/span>faikava <\/span><\/i>was compared with 19 control non-kava-consuming participants. The main purpose was to determine whether it is safe for people to drive following consumption of kava at levels consumed during traditional ceremonies. There was no significant difference in focus, accuracy, timing perception, plasticity and fatigue between kava drinkers and non-drinkers. However, temporal order judgement was significantly impaired following six hours of kava consumption. Temporal order judgement determines whether the brain is able to keep track of the order of events, which is involved with executive function, which may impact on whether users can drive safely. During the study, speech was slurred and participants showed slower psychomotor responses. This contrasts with studies on the use of kava extracts and capsules at lower doses, which have often shown either no effect or an improvement in concentration (1).<\/span>\r\n

Kava extract for treating anxiety<\/h3>\r\nThis Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis included evidence from 12 randomised-controlled trials of the use of kava to treat anxiety. Meta-analysis found a significant effect of kava on reducing anxiety as measured by the Hamilton Anxiety scale (HAM-A). The study also found that use of kava for up to 24 weeks was safe. Effectiveness was found to be similar to benzodiazepines without side effects that benzodiazepines cause such as sedation, amnesia and development of tolerance (12).<\/span>","did_you_know":"In 2002, a German high court banned the use of kava, with subsequent withdrawal in all EU countries, due to safety concerns following a number of case reports of liver toxicity. The ban was overturned in 2014, as concerns were considered to not be proportional to the safety evidence available; many of the cases of liver toxicity were linked to the use of other medications or the use of acetone extracts of the plant rather than the traditional water extracts or more commonly used ethanolic extracts. <\/span>\r\n\r\nHowever, in 2019 the ban was reinstated due to a lack of evidence for efficacy of ethanolic extracts in generalised anxiety disorder, rather than continuing concerns for safety (13). Kava continues to be safely used recreationally or in dietary supplements in the US, Australasia and Pacific Islands.<\/span>","additional_information_right":{"illustration":197739},"additional_information_left":{"botany":"It is thought that <\/span>Piper methysticum<\/span><\/i> is a cultivated variant of the wild <\/span>Piper wichmannii<\/span><\/i> C. DC. (7). Kava is a member of the Piperaceae family and is a perennial or rhizomatous geophyte that grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It thrives at altitudes of between 150 and 300 m above sea level and grows in upland forests (8). The plants used most commonly today are sterile decaploids raised by small holders throughout the Pacific Islands (17).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nThe shrub grows to 2\u20133 m in height with jointed stems and large heart-shaped leaves (7,9). The leaves are alternate and cordate with a wavy entire margin and an abrupt acute point. The petiole is about 2.5cm long, dilated at the base with linear, erect stipules, and prominent veins diverging from the base of the leaf blade. Flowers are small apetalous and on slender spikes (4).<\/span>\r\n\r\nThere are multiple cultivars of kava, including; noble, two-day (tudei), medicinal, and wichmannii. The noble cultivar is higher in kavain and has been classified as the safest cultivar offering predictable effects and higher quality anxiolytic properties. The two-day cultivar has higher levels of dihydromethysticin and dihydrokavain and is associated with causing headaches and nausea. Medicinal and wichmannii cultivars have not been studied as extensively and may be more likely to be used by traditional Pacific herbalists than for everyday use (5).<\/span>","common_names":"