Need something to help you unwind after a hectic day? Ditch the booze for a does of the hip herbal remedy

My first encounter with kava, a herb used to treat stress, is in my local bar in New York. Appropriately named the Kava Lounge, the bar serves drinks mixed with root extract of the kava plant. "Kava is a ceremonial beverage enjoyed throughout Melanesia and Polynesia. Kava tastes like dirty dishwater with a hint of cloves," explains the menu.

Not easily deterred, I choose a kava smoothie: fruit juice mixed with extract of kava. Thankfully, there isn't even a hint of dishwater, and in just a few minutes I feel remarkably relaxed and at peace with the world.

The Kava Lounge is just one manifestation of the current craze for the herb in America. A natural treatment for anxiety, with apparently none of the side effects of chemical equivalents, in the past few years kava has risen to the ranks of herbal superstar: in 1994 sales in America were virtually non-existent, while the current estimate is that the kava market has rocketed to $53m (#33m).

Kava seems to deal very effectively with that most modern of woes: stress. Chris Kilham, author of Kava, Medicine Hunting in Paradise (Park Street Press #10.99) and a long time supporter and promoter of the plant, takes it as often as others might have an alcoholic drink. "If I have had a stressful day or am just wired from a difficult commute home, I will take kava," he says. "I know a lot of people who keep kava in their desk at work for when they get really wound-up. It chills them out but doesn't diminish their effectiveness."

Dr Samuel Benjamin, the director of the Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the State University of New York in Stony Brook, gives kava to patients who have suffered bereavement or are having difficulty sleeping. "It is a valuable tool when used sparingly," he says. "There are no clear signs of addiction and we don't see any real change in the ability to make intelligent decisions, although it may affect reaction times, and I don't recommend it for people who are planning to drive."

Kava is not a new discovery. An extract of the Australasian shrub Piper methysticum, a member of the pepper family, it has been enjoyed by South Pacific islanders for more than 3,000 years. They value kava for its ability to promote sociability and its aphrodisiac qualities. The traditional method of making the kava drink was first described by Johann Forster, a young naturalist who joined Captain Cook on his second voyage to the Pacific in 1777. Forster wrote: "Kava is made in the most disgustful manner that can be imagined ... the root is cut small, and the pieces chewed by several people, who spit the macerated mass into a bowl, where some water of coconuts is poured upon it."

Promoters in America have played down the herb's exotic history as an aphrodisiac and mind-altering drug, marketing it as a natural-health product. Some doctors are not convinced by this image makeover. "People think kava isn't a drug because it grows naturally, but arsenic also occurs naturally," says Benjamin, who is cautious in his support of the plant. "The studies are not of large enough groups of people to be certain of the long-term effects of kava use. I would never give kava to a woman who is breast-feeding or pregnant."

Kilham disagrees. "Kava has been used safely for 3,000 years, by millions of people. Animal studies were done as early as the 1820s and there are good clinical trials on humans. This is a plant that enjoys more investigation than most approved pharmaceutical drugs will ever know."

Although no side effects have been noted in clinical studies, a scaly skin rash has been seen among Polynesians drinking very high doses of liquid kava daily over a prolonged period. It is not a good idea to mix kava with alcohol or drugs such as tranquillisers or antidepressants, as it intensifies the effect. If you have Parkinson's disease, kava might worsen muscle weakness. However, research so far has revealed no evidence of any adverse side effects for healthy people.

At the Kava Lounge, the owner, Charles Boday, throws caution to the wind and offers a very tasty kava cocktail, including kava, fruit juice and rum, but insists that it is such a mild dose of kava that it will not do anybody any harm. "Why would I want to risk people falling off my bar stools?" he asks.

Deciding how much to take and which product to buy can be confusing. Kilham says the most important factor is how many milligrams of kavalactones, the ingredient that promotes relaxation, are contained in each pill. He says that the smallest dose that has proven effective in clinical trials is 70mg of kavalactones, and blames greedy manufacturers for damaging the market by selling low doses. "They put too little in so they can make more money, and that has caused great damage to sales. Many consumers tried it, were disillusioned, and went away."

I try three Natrol kava tablets one afternoon, each containing 37.5mg of kavalactones. After about five minutes I feel far too relaxed to want to do any more work. Later in the week I am having trouble getting to sleep; several work deadlines are looming and as soon as my head hits the pillow I begin to worry. Three kavas later and I am starting to unwind. Moments later I fall asleep and the next morning I wake alert and completely refreshed. The next time I need a good night's sleep, I'll be reaching for the kava.

The health-food chain Revital stocks Country Life's Kava Kava Extract (#13.95, 60 capsules) containing 200mg of kava root, and of this 30% is kavalactones, roughly 70mg. Contact Revital on 0800252875. (The Sunday Times)
 

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