Word: kava
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Most of the products are teas and juices mixed with a variety of herbal, mineral and vitamin supplements. SoBe Wisdom, for instance, contains ginkgo biloba, St. John's wort and gotu kola, which, the label says, promote "focused thought" and "sharpen the mind." Hansen's "d stress" (kava kava, St. John's wort and tyrosine) is supposed to help you "chill out naturally." Fresh Samantha's Super Juice is spiked with echinacea, believed to bolster the immune system. Says SoBe CEO John Bellows: "Coke had cocaine when it started. What we have in our product are legal highs, things that...
...aloe for regularity to valerian for restful sleep--are the hottest of all, with some 60 million Americans now swallowing doses regularly. And for those who crave a tastier fix, there are new so-called functional foods--concoctions such as fruit juice laced with ginseng, or corn chips with kava, the one claiming to perk you up and the other to calm you down...
...Recent scientific research--and fresh attention to practical evidence that sometimes stretches back millenniums--is beginning to give guidance. In Germany, where the government has supervised studies of 279 herbs approved for sale in the country's strictly regulated pharmacies, remedies that enjoy the greatest popularity (including ginkgo, kava and St. John's wort) are generally those that have been the most thoroughly investigated...
Then there's the danger that kava could actually do harm. Doctors know that heavy use over even a few months can cause temporary yellowing and flaking of the skin. The effects of longer use are unknown. Psychological addiction is a risk even if physical addiction isn't. Also worrisome is the danger of adverse drug interaction. A kava user in Georgia who had been taking the sedative Xanax had blackouts when he switched from the drug to the root...
...will allow kava manufacturers to promote their product only in a general way, advertising it as a supplement without citing any specific medical benefits. Until formal studies are conducted, those restrictions will stand. Even without a government green light, however, kava will probably remain popular, sold as an antianxiety herb that dare not call itself that. "People like the idea of feeling mellow but staying alert," says Blumenthal. "That's what kava does." The question is, At what cost...