Why are lecithin and coconut oil recommended vs plain vegetable oil for mixing with kava?

[Kavaguy]

I have seen recommendations on this forum for soy lecithin, sunflower lecithin, and coconut oil in order to extract more kavalactones. Is there any reason not to just use canola/vegetable oil? Costs a lot less. Is it just because the aforementioned fats are overall more healthy, or that they make the kava taste better? Thanks.

 

[The Kap'n]

I have seen recommendations on this forum for soy lecithin, sunflower lecithin, and coconut oil in order to extract more kavalactones. Is there any reason not to just use canola/vegetable oil? Costs a lot less. Is it just because the aforementioned fats are overall more healthy, or that they make the kava taste better? Thanks.

I can see the advantage of taste and possibly the viscosity of the emulsion when using lecithin and coconut oil. It would seem vegetable oil, while it would still theoretically help with extraction, it wont be as nice to drink.

 

[AlexisReal]

I think very much that healthy, natural, saturated fats facilitate a much better extraction of psychoactives.

This is certainly the case with cannabinoids.
And Sunflower lecithin seems to aid in that extraction very noticeably.

 

[sɥɐʞɐs]

I've used a spoonful of regular vegetable oil plenty of times...I'm never sure if it has actually made a difference or not, but sometimes I think it might be 10% - 15% stronger. The same is true for when I used to use lecithin.

 

[TheKavaSociety]

oils supposedly stick to the bowl and strainer (together with kavalactones). Lecitihin (supposedly) doesn't.

 

[verticity]

Chemically, lecithin is a an "amphiphilic" emulsifier. Amphiphilic means it can dissolve in either water or oil, and can also emulsify things that are not normally water soluble. The most common amphiphilic emulsifier everyone is familiar with is soap. Since kavalactones are not very water soluble, the idea is that lecithin ought to make them more so. Things like coconut and other oils don't have the emulsifying properties of lecithin, but kavalactones are more soluble in them than in water, so they can be used to increase KL extraction. But then they tend to separate out into a film floating on top, which in my subjective opinion is pretty gross. People here probably talk about coconut oil more than other kinds simply because coconuts are also tropical island things and are associated with kava drinking, although coconut oil is not traditionally used to prepare kava. The purported health benefits of coconut oil versus other saturated fats are debatable, and that debate is probably outside the scope of this forum..

 

[AlexisReal]

Apart from anything, plain and simple- healthier fats. Refined oils are poison for a start.

But even cold pressed seed oils have so much, pro-inflammatory omega 6, their consumption is best kept minimised.

 

[Blue Roads]

I'm glad for this thread. It reminded me to get some more soy lecithin, at least for the phospholipids in it.

 

[aviavieu]

Lecithin enhances the potency of making Kava through fat. Kava then changes to a more silting profile

 

[Yogini]

I can't say that it makes the kava any stronger for me but I need healthy fats in my diet so I use coconut milk and sometimes MCT oil (coconut oil but 'fancier', I'll be going back to plain coconut oil after this bottle is gone).