News Article Australian article about kava

[Szafirek]

Kava may be coming to a supermarket or cafe near you. But what is it? Is it safe?

Kava is not commonly used in Australia. But that will change and we need to keep an eye on what happens next.

theconversation.com

 

[The Kap'n]

Kava may be coming to a supermarket or cafe near you. But what is it? Is it safe?

Kava is not commonly used in Australia. But that will change and we need to keep an eye on what happens next.

theconversation.com

Interesting article about the Australian pilot program. As is tradition, the paper goes on to cite some of the "harms" seen with kava.

Here is where they get their "harms"

Butt, Julia. 2019. Kava Usage in Aboriginal and Pacific Islander Communities in Australia. National Drug Research Institute. https://healthbulletin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/kava-bulletin-web.pdf

Mathews, J. D., M. D. Riley, L. Fejo, E. Munoz, N. R. Milns, I. D. Gardner, J. R. Powers, E. Ganygulpa, and B. J. Gununuwawuy. 1988. “Effects of the Heavy Usage of Kava on Physical Health: Summary of a Pilot Survey in an Aboriginal Community.” The Medical Journal of Australia 148 (11): 548–55. https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.1988.tb93809.x.


What's funny is that these are ALWAYS the source when "kava harms" are cited, and I would suggest giving these two papers a read, as they're full of inaccuracies, and incorrect conclusions. The Butt paper (lol) simply postulates ideas with no backing evidence as "possible". My favorite part is how it says kava withdrawal may be associated with seizures, and heart disease, which is hilariously wrong.

The Mathews papers is a great study into the malnutrition and general poor health of an impoverished subjugated aboriginal community of Australia, however it reflects nothing about the general effects of kava other than maybe a raised GGT value in especially heavy users which has been tied to adaptation, and not toxicity. I only say this about GGT because it's been replicated in other studies (Brown et al 2007).



Brown, Amy C., Janet Onopa, Peter Holck, Pakieli Kaufusi, Derek Kabasawa, Winston J. Craig, Klaus Dragull, Arieh M. Levine, and Jonathan D. Baker. 2007. “Traditional Kava Beverage Consumption and Liver Function Tests in a Predominantly Tongan Population in Hawaii.” Clinical Toxicology 45 (5): 549–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/15563650701365875.

 

[Alia]

Interesting article about the Australian pilot program. As is tradition, the paper goes on to cite some of the "harms" seen with kava.

Here is where they get their "harms"

Butt, Julia. 2019. Kava Usage in Aboriginal and Pacific Islander Communities in Australia. National Drug Research Institute. https://healthbulletin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/kava-bulletin-web.pdf

Mathews, J. D., M. D. Riley, L. Fejo, E. Munoz, N. R. Milns, I. D. Gardner, J. R. Powers, E. Ganygulpa, and B. J. Gununuwawuy. 1988. “Effects of the Heavy Usage of Kava on Physical Health: Summary of a Pilot Survey in an Aboriginal Community.” The Medical Journal of Australia 148 (11): 548–55. https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.1988.tb93809.x.


What's funny is that these are ALWAYS the source when "kava harms" are cited, and I would suggest giving these two papers a read, as they're full of inaccuracies, and incorrect conclusions. The Butt paper (lol) simply postulates ideas with no backing evidence as "possible". My favorite part is how it says kava withdrawal may be associated with seizures, and heart disease, which is hilariously wrong.

The Mathews papers is a great study into the malnutrition and general poor health of an impoverished subjugated aboriginal community of Australia, however it reflects nothing about the general effects of kava other than maybe a raised GGT value in especially heavy users which has been tied to adaptation, and not toxicity. I only say this about GGT because it's been replicated in other studies (Brown et al 2007).



Brown, Amy C., Janet Onopa, Peter Holck, Pakieli Kaufusi, Derek Kabasawa, Winston J. Craig, Klaus Dragull, Arieh M. Levine, and Jonathan D. Baker. 2007. “Traditional Kava Beverage Consumption and Liver Function Tests in a Predominantly Tongan Population in Hawaii.” Clinical Toxicology 45 (5): 549–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/15563650701365875.

It appears that even if you register it is still not possible to comment even though there is a comment section.
It would be worth trying to comment and I would if I could.

 

[kasa_balavu]

Here is where they get their "harms"

Butt, Julia. 2019. Kava Usage in Aboriginal and Pacific Islander Communities in Australia. National Drug Research Institute. https://healthbulletin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/kava-bulletin-web.pdf
...
What's funny is that these are ALWAYS the source when "kava harms" are cited, and I would suggest giving these two papers a read, as they're full of inaccuracies, and incorrect conclusions. The Butt paper (lol) simply postulates ideas with no backing evidence as "possible". My favorite part is how it says kava withdrawal may be associated with seizures, and heart disease, which is hilariously wrong.

This article was written by the very same Butt.

 

[The Kap'n]

This article was written by the very same Butt.

Classic Butts!

 

[Szafirek]

Interesting article about the Australian pilot program. As is tradition, the paper goes on to cite some of the "harms" seen with kava.

Here is where they get their "harms"

Butt, Julia. 2019. Kava Usage in Aboriginal and Pacific Islander Communities in Australia. National Drug Research Institute. https://healthbulletin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/kava-bulletin-web.pdf

Mathews, J. D., M. D. Riley, L. Fejo, E. Munoz, N. R. Milns, I. D. Gardner, J. R. Powers, E. Ganygulpa, and B. J. Gununuwawuy. 1988. “Effects of the Heavy Usage of Kava on Physical Health: Summary of a Pilot Survey in an Aboriginal Community.” The Medical Journal of Australia 148 (11): 548–55. https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.1988.tb93809.x.


What's funny is that these are ALWAYS the source when "kava harms" are cited, and I would suggest giving these two papers a read, as they're full of inaccuracies, and incorrect conclusions. The Butt paper (lol) simply postulates ideas with no backing evidence as "possible". My favorite part is how it says kava withdrawal may be associated with seizures, and heart disease, which is hilariously wrong.

The Mathews papers is a great study into the malnutrition and general poor health of an impoverished subjugated aboriginal community of Australia, however it reflects nothing about the general effects of kava other than maybe a raised GGT value in especially heavy users which has been tied to adaptation, and not toxicity. I only say this about GGT because it's been replicated in other studies (Brown et al 2007).



Brown, Amy C., Janet Onopa, Peter Holck, Pakieli Kaufusi, Derek Kabasawa, Winston J. Craig, Klaus Dragull, Arieh M. Levine, and Jonathan D. Baker. 2007. “Traditional Kava Beverage Consumption and Liver Function Tests in a Predominantly Tongan Population in Hawaii.” Clinical Toxicology 45 (5): 549–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/15563650701365875.

They can't help but repeat myths. They are used to seeing many common substances causing harm. They think kava must be like that too.

However, there is no tragedy. They only attribute their myths to heavy consumption. There is also talk of benefits, the opinion of the WHO, the centuries-old traditional consumption.

 

[Szafirek]

It appears that even if you register it is still not possible to comment even though there is a comment section.
It would be worth trying to comment and I would if I could.

Our bot found the same article on another website link. There is an option "Feedback to editors"