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Anyone ever use Kava ?

post #1 of 34
12/24/08 at 2:50am
Thread Starter 
I just tried 1 tea bag of Yogi Kava Tea, and it made me feel a bit relaxed. Did you try the tea, the pills, or both? What was your experience with it? Here's the brand I tried:
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post #2 of 34
12/24/08 at 2:37pm
I had it in fiji. Everyone there drinks it freshly ground up. It looks like mud water. I would rather drink mud water. Ugh.
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post #3 of 34
12/24/08 at 3:01pm
Tastes NASTY!!
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post #4 of 34
12/24/08 at 3:41pm
be careful - it phucks with your libido in a negative way.
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post #5 of 34
12/24/08 at 6:09pm
Thread Starter 
The Yogi Kava Tea tastes pretty good...
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post #6 of 34
12/25/08 at 6:26pm
Never tried it.

But now I'm a bit curious though it has some diverging opinions in the thread. With the latest new brands and tea names that come out regularly you can never be too sure about its effectiveness. Speaking of which, what does the do or what are its benefits?
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post #7 of 34
12/25/08 at 6:37pm
I have tried the tea you mentioned and enjoy drinking it on occasion; perhaps two or three times a month. I notice a distinct calming effect shortly after drinking it, somewhat similar to the feeling one gets after having sat in a hot tub or sauna. I haven't noticed any effect on my libido. Apparently regular kava consumption might be detrimental to one's liver, though; I avoid using it and alcohol on the same day.
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post #8 of 34
12/25/08 at 7:29pm
I'm a little suspicious about the potential potency of kava tea. I have nothing against herbal stuff, it's just that generally when it's branded/marketed as tea, supplements etc they put tiny amounts of active ingredient. It generally takes ~1/4 cup of the actual plant material for kava to have any effect, and I doubt there's that much in the tea-bag, though I suppose they could use some sort of an extract. Does it make your lips numb? If so, it's probably working, if not, the relaxing sensation you feel is probably more from drinking a nice cup of tea than from the ingredients therein.
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post #9 of 34
12/25/08 at 7:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spintherism View Post
I'm a little suspicious about the potential potency of kava tea. I have nothing against herbal stuff, it's just that generally when it's branded/marketed as tea, supplements etc they put tiny amounts of active ingredient. It generally takes ~1/4 cup of the actual plant material for kava to have any effect, and I doubt there's that much in the tea-bag, though I suppose they could use some sort of an extract. Does it make your lips numb? If so, it's probably working, if not, the relaxing sensation you feel is probably more from drinking a nice cup of tea than from the ingredients therein.
I was initially skeptical as well. I first purchased the tea after a friend in Fiji recommended I try kava; I doubt it is as potent as what she's drinking there. However, as I said, it's a distinct sensation. I drink a wide variety of teas and have never experienced the same effect through simply having "a nice cup of tea." I do typically use more than one tea bag when preparing the kava tea, which I suppose might increase the potency somewhat.
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post #10 of 34
12/26/08 at 1:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tundrafour View Post
I was initially skeptical as well. I first purchased the tea after a friend in Fiji recommended I try kava; I doubt it is as potent as what she's drinking there. However, as I said, it's a distinct sensation. I drink a wide variety of teas and have never experienced the same effect through simply having "a nice cup of tea." I do typically use more than one tea bag when preparing the kava tea, which I suppose might increase the potency somewhat.
I've had the real stuff in fiji. If you have a whole lot of bowls of the crap, it feels like you took an aspirin. Nothing more. And you have to drink a LOT of it. We are talking giant bowls here with the gross root constantly crushed in. So I am willing to bet you are experiencing a placebo effect.
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post #11 of 34
12/26/08 at 1:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by haganah View Post
I've had the real stuff in fiji. If you have a whole lot of bowls of the crap, it feels like you took an aspirin. Nothing more. And you have to drink a LOT of it. We are talking giant bowls here with the gross root constantly crushed in. So I am willing to bet you are experiencing a placebo effect.

I suppose it's possible, although I really don't think that's the case.

How do you account for its widespread use among Fijians and other Pacific Islanders if its effects are essentially non-existent?
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post #12 of 34
12/26/08 at 2:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tundrafour View Post
I suppose it's possible, although I really don't think that's the case. How do you account for its widespread use among Fijians and other Pacific Islanders if its effects are essentially non-existent?
It's dirt cheap (fijians are far from rich), heavily tied into culture, and you can party with kava and then drive home and not get a ticket because there is no breathalyzer test for it (the last one is actually more of a problem there with those crazy drivers than a benefit). Honestly, it sucks. You have no idea. They make it in a giant bowl and keep grinding it in and it looks like mud. It tastes so, so bad. And you think "hey i'll drink one bowl and it's done". No. They make another bowl. And another. And another. And you feel like you're invested. "Hey I drank so much crap already. I may as well keep going." So you keep going. Then your tongue feels slightly numb and it feels like you had an aspirin at the end. GREAT. And I wasn't the only one that experienced this either.
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post #13 of 34
12/26/08 at 4:43pm
Well you know alcohol is mostly placebo too. There were some great experiments where they made alcoholic-tasting non-alcoholic drinks and alcoholic non-alcoholic-tasting drinks. The people who were drunk but thought they were sober just got bored and depressed while the sober people got pretty wasted. Not that alcohol doesn't have a physiological effect, but psychologically speaking, it's all about expectations. The same goes for kava. Just because the effects are in part due to placebo doesn't mean they're not "real."
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post #14 of 34
12/26/08 at 4:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spintherism View Post
Well you know alcohol is mostly placebo too. There were some great experiments where they made alcoholic-tasting non-alcoholic drinks and alcoholic non-alcoholic-tasting drinks. The people who were drunk but thought they were sober just got bored and depressed while the sober people got pretty wasted. Not that alcohol doesn't have a physiological effect, but psychologically speaking, it's all about expectations. The same goes for kava. Just because the effects are in part due to placebo doesn't mean they're not "real."
Umm no.
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post #15 of 34
12/26/08 at 4:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spintherism View Post
Well you know alcohol is mostly placebo too. There were some great experiments where they made alcoholic-tasting non-alcoholic drinks and alcoholic non-alcoholic-tasting drinks. The people who were drunk but thought they were sober just got bored and depressed while the sober people got pretty wasted. Not that alcohol doesn't have a physiological effect, but psychologically speaking, it's all about expectations. The same goes for kava. Just because the effects are in part due to placebo doesn't mean they're not "real."

There is some placebo effect with alcohol, but it's not "mostly placebo". I could tell you you're drinking Odul's and you could completely believe me but if it's really Sam Adams light and you have 6 of them your motor skills and judgment are going to be just as impaired.
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