Kava + Benadryl = harmful?

[kavanoob]

I'm drinking the 11 year waka kava micronized powder. It's the best sleeping aid I've ever had. No tolerance, I love it. But I'm starting to develop dry skin. A side effect of this dry skin is itchiness. Will taking 50mg Benadryl every day and 50mg Benadryl every night in combination with the 11 yr waka kava be harmful for me? Will it negatively affect my kidneys/liver/etc because my body's trying to metabolize both, etc.?

 

[Kavashua]

I can't say anything about how healthy it is but I can say from my own experiance that mixing the two is not very pleasant. It left me so dopey that I was almost non-functional. Are you taking the benadryl to offset the itchiness? If so it's not likely to help because the itchiness is'nt being caused by an allergic reaction.

 

[Kojo Douglas]

Benadryl makes me unbearably depressed. I've never had a good experience with it.

 

[Groggy]

Same problem for me, if I mix any allergy medication with kava it makes me feel very drowsy.

 

[F3TU5]

Benadryl + Kava = dick in the dirt

 

[Zac Imiola (Herbalist)]

It will knock you out good.
But never use anticholinergic drugs long term ever!

I used the combo for opiate withdrawls and it worked great. I would use coocnut oil externally and internally for your itchiness

 

[Edward]

I'm drinking the 11 year waka kava micronized powder. It's the best sleeping aid I've ever had. No tolerance, I love it. But I'm starting to develop dry skin. A side effect of this dry skin is itchiness. Will taking 50mg Benadryl every day and 50mg Benadryl every night in combination with the 11 yr waka kava be harmful for me? Will it negatively affect my kidneys/liver/etc because my body's trying to metabolize both, etc.?

I find I can get a bit more itchy with that one. I did an acetone test and it is noble but it's strong so could account for the slight dermo. As @Mrbinx69 says above try coconut oil. Since I've been using that I have had only very minor incidences of dermo. I use coconut oil caps for convenience but I've got virgin oil for eating if the occasion arises and lower quality for smearing on if I get a bad patch.

 

[verticity]

I have occasionally used Benadryl to help with sleep after drinking kava. No ill effects in this anecdote. But when I use Benadryl it's generally as a sedative, not for itchiness. You could try a non-sedating antihistamine like Claritin.
Benadryl is metabolized by CYP2D6 and 3A4.
Both of those enzymes are also involved in kava metabolism. (In the case of 2D6 there are contradictory studies, though)
So there is the possibility of some metabolic interaction, or potentiation. So I would recommend using the smallest effective dose of Benadryl. I usually use 25 mg for sleep.

 

[chandra]

Your best bet is probably to try an oatmeal bath, coconut oil, or anti itch cream. A combination of all three would be fine. Benadryl doesn't do much for itching that isn't caused by an allergy. Zyrtec is non sedating, but it isn't likely to help much either. Focus on taking care of your skin from the outside.