Kava Fact of the Day No instance of liver injury in 7078 patients.

[The Kap'n]

Kava fact of the day: Two drug monitoring studies, including a total of 7078 patients taking 120-150mg kava extract per day, had not found a single case of liver damage [1].



In 2002 a systematic review of the safety of kava extract was undertaken. They reviewed the studies of many different clinical trials. They also included the results of two drug monitoring studies. Adults were taking 120-150mg kava extract for 6 weeks. While there were instances of negative interactions, they were limited to gastrointestinal upset, allergy, headache and dizziness. Two drug monitoring studies found no instances of liver injury out of the groups [2]. This study is applicable to those consuming kavas medicinally using extracts. This study doesn’t necessarily speak to those of us who consume kava traditionally in larger amounts, however it does lend evidence that the daily consumption of kavalactones does not directly lead to liver damage in healthy individuals. These studies also review theories of liver injury that occurred during the 1998-2002 time period.





[1] Ernst, E. “A re-evaluation of kava (Piper methysticum).” British journal of clinical pharmacology vol. 64,4 (2007): 415-7. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2125.2007.02932.x
(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2048557/)



[2] Stevinson C, Huntley A, Ernst E. A systematic review of the safety of kava extract in the treatment of anxiety. Drug Saf. 2002;25(4):251-61. doi: 10.2165/00002018-200225040-00003. PMID: 11994028.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11994028/)

 

[Fushi88]

What's the equivalent of 120-150mg extract to tbsp or grams of an average medium grind?

 

[fueledbykava]

What's the equivalent of 120-150mg extract to tbsp or grams of an average medium grind?

You could get a sense of how much KLs are in a particular variety of Kava if the vendor has had recent testing done on it. You could then extrapolate it per the amount of grams you're consuming. The trick is determining how much you've actually extracted during your wash. I would imagine that this would vary greatly by factors such as grind level, time spent kneading, how much water/what temperature it is, etc...

 

[The Kap'n]

What's the equivalent of 120-150mg extract to tbsp or grams of an average medium grind?

@fueledbykava is correct. With standard kavas you'll probably see around .5-2mg/ml in prepared kavas made strong, but that's a very very rough estimate.

 

[Fushi88]

@fueledbykava is correct. With standard kavas you'll probably see around .5-2mg/ml in prepared kavas made strong, but that's a very very rough estimate.

Oh snap, so in short, you'd have to drink a buuuuuunch of Kava to come anywhere close to the extract