This article is about the plant. For the class of pharmacological derivatives, see Kavalactone. For other uses, see Kava (disambiguation).
Kava
Piper methysticum leaves
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
Clade:
Tracheophytes
Clade:
Angiosperms
Clade:
Magnoliids
Order:
Piperales
Family:
Piperaceae
Genus:
Piper
Species:
P. methysticum
Binomial name
Piper methysticum
G.Forst.
Kava or kava kava (Piper methysticum: Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a crop of the Pacific Islands.[1] The name kava is from Tongan and Marquesan, meaning 'bitter';[1] other names for kava include ʻawa (Hawaiʻi),[2]ʻava (Samoa),[3]yaqona or yagona (Fiji),[4]sakau (Pohnpei),[5]seka (Kosrae),[6] and malok or malogu (parts of Vanuatu).[7] Kava is consumed for its sedating effects throughout the Pacific Ocean cultures of Polynesia, including Hawaii and Vanuatu, Melanesia, some parts of Micronesia, such as Pohnpei and Kosrae, and the Philippines.
The root of the plant is used to produce a drink with sedative, anesthetic, and euphoriant properties. Its active ingredients are called kavalactones.[8] A systematic review done by the British nonprofit Cochrane concluded it was likely to be more effective than placebo at treating short-term anxiety.[9]
Moderate consumption of kava in its traditional form, i.e., as a water-based suspension of kava roots, has been deemed to present an "acceptably low level of health risk" by the World Health Organization.[10] However, consumption of kava extracts produced with organic solvents, or excessive amounts of poor-quality kava products, may be linked to an increased risk of adverse health outcomes, including potential liver injury.[10][11][12]
^"Nā Puke Wehewehe ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi". wehewehe.org. Retrieved 22 December 2017.
^Fitisemanu, Jacob (2007) Samoan social drinking: perpetuation and adaptation of ʻAva ceremonies in Salt Lake County, Utah B. A. Thesis, Westminster College p. 2.
^"Embassy of the Republic of Fiji". www.fijiembassy.be. Archived from the original on 10 June 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2017.
^Balick, Michael J. and Leem, Roberta (2002) Traditional use of sakau (kava) in Pohnpei: lessons for integrative medicine Alternative Therapies, Vol. 8, No.4. p. 96
^Lebot V, Merlin M, Lindstrom L (23 December 1992). Kava. Yale University Press. doi:10.2307/j.ctt211qwxb. ISBN 978-0-300-23898-3.
^Lebot V, Merlin M, Lindstrom L (1997). Kava: The Pacific Elixir: The Definitive Guide to Its Ethnobotany, History, and Chemistry. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-89281-726-9.
^Wang J, Qu W, Bittenbender HC, Li QX (2013). "Kavalactone content and chemotype of kava beverages prepared from roots and rhizomes of Isa and Mahakea varieties and extraction efficiency of kavalactones using different solvents". Journal of Food Science and Technology. 52 (2): 1164–1169. doi:10.1007/s13197-013-1047-2. PMC 4325077. PMID 25694734.
^Pittler MH, Ernst E (2003). Pittler MH (ed.). "Kava extract for treating anxiety". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2003 (1): CD003383. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD003383. PMC 6999799. PMID 12535473.
^ ab"Kava: a review of the safety of traditional and recreational beverage consumption" (PDF). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and World Health Organization, Rome, Italy. 2016.
^Kuchta K, Schmidt M, Nahrstedt A (1 December 2015). "German Kava Ban Lifted by Court: The Alleged Hepatotoxicity of Kava (Piper methysticum) as a Case of Ill-Defined Herbal Drug Identity, Lacking Quality Control, and Misguided Regulatory Politics". Planta Medica. 81 (18): 1647–1653. doi:10.1055/s-0035-1558295. ISSN 1439-0221. PMID 26695707. S2CID 23708406.
^Showman AF, Baker JD, Linares C, Naeole CK, Borris R, Johnston E, Konanui J, Turner H (2015). "Contemporary Pacific and Western perspectives on 'awa (Piper methysticum) toxicology". Fitoterapia. 100: 56–67. doi:10.1016/j.fitote.2014.11.012. PMID 25464054.
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