An Updated Review on the Psychoactive, Toxic and Anticancer Properties of Kava

Abstract

Kava (Piper methysticum) has been widely consumed for many years in the South Pacific Islands and displays psychoactive properties, especially soothing and calming effects. This plant has been used in Western countries as a natural anxiolytic in recent decades. Kava has also been used to treat symptoms associated with depression, menopause, insomnia, and convulsions, among others. Along with its putative beneficial health effects, kava has been associated with liver injury and other toxic effects, including skin toxicity in heavy consumers, possibly related to its metabolic profile or interference in the metabolism of other xenobiotics. Kava extracts and kavalactones generally displayed negative results in genetic toxicology assays although there is sufficient evidence for carcinogenicity in experimental animals, most likely through a non-genotoxic mode of action. Nevertheless, the chemotherapeutic/chemopreventive potential of kava against cancer has also been suggested. Both in vitro and in vivo studies have evaluated the effects of flavokavains, kavalactones and/or kava extracts in different cancer models, showing the induction of apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and other antiproliferative effects in several types of cancer, including breast, prostate, bladder, and lung. Overall, in this scoping review, several aspects of kava efficacy and safety are discussed and some pertinent issues related to kava consumption are identified.

Alleviating anxiety and taming trauma: Novel pharmacotherapeutics for anxiety disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder

“…Though concrete clinical evidence remains scarce, the lavender preparation, Silexan, is approved in Germany as a treatment for subsyndromal anxiety symptoms and is the subject of ongoing clinical trials in patients with mild to moderate depression (EudraCT number 2020-000688-22 ). Other phytochemicals, such as Kava, are also being evaluated ( Soares et al, 2022 ), despite disappointing phase III results in GAD ( Sarris et al, 2021 ).…”

Natural Products Inhibition of Cytochrome P450 2B6 Activity and Methadone Metabolism

“…The major ingredients of kava with reported biological activities are kavalactones (Figure 1) and flavokavains (Table 1). Kava contains 19 kavalactones (of which 6 account for 96% of pharmacologic activity-kavain, dihydrokavain, methysticin, dihydromethysticin, yangonin, desmethoxyyangonin) and the minor constituent chalcones (flavokavains A, B, C) (Olsen et al, 2011;Soares et al, 2022). Chalcone compounds, also known as chalconoids, are a large family of plant-derived polyphenolic flavonoids with a common chemical scaffold of α,βunsaturated ketone consisting of two aromatic rings (1,3-diaryl-2-propen-1-one).…”

Kava Induced Hepatotoxicity In Sacramento County

“…Kava (kava-kava, ava, and awa) is the dried pulverized root of various Piper methysticum species. Kava is known to have psychoactive properties, like those in alcohol, and can be ingested through pills, herbal medicine, or in beverage form [1]. The active ingredients in the plant are kavapyrones (kavalactones), which provide similar effects as alcohol, such as muscle relaxation, euphoria, and improved overall well-being [2].…”