Does kava actually work for anxiety?

[1337m4n]

I've been looking for an over-the-counter anxiety relief and a friend recommended Kava.

Now maybe it's just because I've spent too much time on JREF but I'm highly suspicious of anything that sounds like "hippie stuff". This medicine isn't available in the average drugstore around here; I have to go to a specialty market like Whole Foods. And I noticed it was in the same general section of the store as homeopathics, which is proven to be a load of hooey.

But I'm a trusting guy so I figured I'll at least ask the good folks at JREF before I outright dismiss it. Figured you might know whether this stuff does what it claims to do, or whether it's just another "hippie" placebo.

 

[Professor Yaffle]

Cochrane review:

REVIEWER'S CONCLUSIONS: Compared with placebo, kava extract appears to be an effective symptomatic treatment option for anxiety. The data available from the reviewed studies suggest that kava is relatively safe for short-term treatment (1 to 24 weeks), although more information is required. Further rigorous investigations, particularly into the long-term safety profile of kava are warranted.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12535473

 

[r-j]

Back in the hippy days we would use Kava Kava to get high. You have to prepare it the way the native people did, but it worked great. By high I mean all dopey and happy. Like a mild downer with slight euphoric effects.

 

[Deetee]

I find cava works for me.

 

[jdc324]

It might be worth considering the reported side-effects too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kava#Side_effects_and_safety