Kava Kava, Natural Cure For Anxiety & Depression
Kava is an ancient western Pacific crop and has long been part of religious, political and cultural life throughout the region. The drink was the beverage of choice among nobility.
Kava is thought to have originated in Melanesia, a group of islands in the pacific compromised of Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Solomon Islands. For the last several hundred years, native islanders consumed this beverage in sacred ceremonies. In the 18th century, Captain Cook travelled to this part of the world and observed first hand the uses of Kava. Natives would server it as a brownish, bitter tea or chewed the roots of the plant. Known for its calming and restorative properties, Kava Kava, a medically-proven stress-relieving root, has been used for over 3000 years by people of the pacific to manage a wide range of physical problems.
In the modern world today, the properties of Kava is just coming to light. It can be used as an herbal remedy to ease the symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression. It offers a calming sense of well being and clear thinking and also acts as a mild muscle relaxant. Sleep is restful and there are noa fter effects the next day. With the ability to produce a calming effect and treat a number of conditions, Kava Kava has, in recent years, been targeted by the supplement industry, and packaged for mass consumption. It can be purchased in tablet form, tincture, soft-gel, liquid, capsule, or, and many would say the preferred option, its traditional powdered form.
Kava is not pharmacologically addictive. Its main ingredients are kavalactones. While kava has been considered relatively safe, some kava herbal supplements may contain pipermethystine from aerial stem peelings which may contribute to rare but severe hepatotoxic reactions to kava.
Kava Kava is thought to exert its therapeutic effects by acting on the limbic system (an ancient part of the brain that controls emotions), without dulling the mind5. The Kavalactones do not interact specifically with the receptor binding sites in the limbic system which cause sedation, rather, they modify the receptor domains. The effect of Kava Kava causes one to feel happy, unconcerned and contented. Mental status (in terms of acuity and cognition) is not altered despite tiredness of limbs and the dreamy state one enters. Kava Kava will not place one into an angry state and there are no hangovers.
For more information, check out the following articles:
The Benefits of Kava
Kava Kava has Many Health Benefits and Uses
KAVA KAVA, benefits and side effects
Written by derivante
