In "Getting Stoned With Savages," Troost paints a picture of Kava that seems quite unrealistic. I have thrown back literally two dozen shells of strong Kava in one session and never experienced a two-day coma where people had to carry me home. I've never held a shell of Kava in my hands and dropped it on the ground because I was so unbelievably (direct meaning intended) lifted. Every time I go back to that book to reread the nakamal encounter in Vanuatu, I become more and more puzzled about what Troost is really up to. Not much, methinks.
We can thank Troost for introducing many a reader to the world of kavalactones. But perhaps we can also wonder whether he actually really liked - or even tried - Kava.
I also haven't read the entirety of his account. But, as I try to think of all the possibilities, I agree that it could be due to an allergy or simply bullshit to make his story sound more fantastic. Other possibilities:
-he could be on a medication when he did it, that caused the reaction.
-he could have an underlaying health problem that doesn't mix well with kava.
-he could be a natural lightweight bombarding his system with strong kava.
-I've read somewhere that cocky sailors (in the past) would be given a special extremely potent grog (some wild variety maybe?), deliberately to put them in their place. (not sure if this still happens anywhere in modern times)
-I found a study once that said some people simply aren't born capable of processing kava the same way as others. Similar to the way that almost all asians are lactose intolerant, but people of european decent are rarely lactose intolerant(relatively). The same goes for processing alcohol, asians are much more likely than europeans to not process it correctly and suffer complications from drinking it. There are little evolutionary genetic quirks like this around the world, between cultures. Perhaps this man's lack of pacific island genetics has left him as one of the "
kava-intolerant". ...sucks for him.
In all honesty, I question the difficulty I can have with kava, at times, and wonder if it might be the same issue. If I had the blood of generations of kava drinkers in me, would the experience always be better .... ? Have my european genes made kava a bit more difficult for me to process ?
I have heard accounts of locals drinking to the point of temporary immobilization, but nothing in the way of 2 day long coma-states.