DOSE:

8.5 g

oral

Kava

(liquid)

BODY WEIGHT:

70 kg

The first time me and one of my friends tried Kava, we unfortunately didnīt have any lecithin to mix with it. We took approx. 16 grams of Kava Kava powder (8 grams per person) with 1 litre 3% fat milk. We simply put the Kava powder in the milk and stirred for approx. 10 minutes. Nothing besides a slight numbing sensation in the mouth was felt. Totally pointless if you ask me.....

Next time we got hold of some lecithin and that seemed to make all the difference! This time we were three people. Together we made a brew with 2 litres of 3% milk and 25 grams of Kava Kava powder (from the same batch of Kava Kava powder as before), 6 spoons (ordinary kitchen spoons) of lecithin granulate (it said on the lecethen container that 2-3 spoons a day - was a normal dose) and 4 spoons (kitchen spoons) of olive oil - and put this into a blender for 7 minutes or so. Then we put the stuff in the fridge for about 2 hours - so the lecithin could do its 'work' on the Kava powder.

One of us drank 3/6 (approx. 12.5 grams of Kava powder) of the brew, another one of us (me) drank 2/6 (8.5 grams of Kava powder) and the third person drank 1/6 of the brew (4 grams of Kava powder). There was an obvious difference between this time and the first time we tried Kava. This time (with the lecithin) after approx 20 minutes or so - we got a minor feeling of 'numbness' in our heads. Besides this the only other 'effect' we got was 'feeling sleepy'.

There was an obvious difference between the three of us. The guy taking only 4 grams was not particularly sleepy, while I (taking 8.5 grams) felt like I could have fallen asleep easily on the couch - there and then. The person taking 12.5 grams of Kava powder actually did fall asleep - about one hour after drinking the Kava. Although we were all a bit tired to start with (it was friday evening and we had all been working the whole week) the time was only 10.30 pm in the evening when my friend fell asleep (and boy did he sleep). He managed to this while we were all watching an action film.

The only other thing I can say about the Kava is that it might have influenced my dreams that night. I got a lot of vivid dreams that I could easily remember when I woke up.

My conclusion: Kava prepared the 'wrong way' did nothing at all. Kava prepared 'the right' got us sleepy and maybe a little 'numb in the head'. As a sleeping remedy it seems to be great but as a 'recreational drug' itīs almost worthless. Considering the fact that large doses (or prolonged use) of kava might be toxic to the liver - it simply doesnīt seem to be worth the effort. The 'Kava hype' seems to be much ado about nothing special.

Exp Year: 2001	ExpID: 6533
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Feb 28, 2002	Views: 30,329
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Kava (30) : Small Group (2-9) (17), Preparation / Recipes (30), General (1)