From: un040367@wvnvms.wvnet.edu
Newsgroups: alt.drugs
Subject: Kava extract report
Date: 25 Dec 92 14:04:52 GMT
Organization: West Virginia Network for Educational Telecomputing

Account of the effects of a Kava extract

Kava (Piper methysicum) is a traditional Fijian intoxicant,
which is legal in many countries. The roots contain various
active substances, e.g. methysticin, tetrahydromethysticin,
any of which require quite large amounts (>1g) for narcotic
activity. It has become popular in Australia, particularly
among the Aborigines of the Nothern Territory, and is sold
in Fijian shops, and some corner stores in Sydney.

The traditional preparation involves soaking pounded ground
root in water for some hours, straining, and then drinking
the liquid slowly and continuously for hours. Most non-Fijians
find this extremely unpleasant, despite the strong local
anesthetic effect on the lips, mouth and throat. Hence, I 
decided to prepare an extract that might be more effective 
and easy to ingest.

I bought 450g of powdered "Lewana" grade Kava for A$13 (around
US$10). "Waka" grade may be more effective, and the whole
root better still, although the preparation is more
difficult. The whole powder was soaked in aprx. 800 ml
freshly distilled acetone for a few hours with occasional
stirring. The excess yellow acetone extract (around 300 ml) 
was decanted and filtered, and the solvent distilled off, to 
leave a golden brown oil which solidified somewhat on standing. 
This process was repeated with fresh acetone (around 300 ml)
aprx. six times, with the slurry being heated to boiling on the 
final time, and all of the residues were combined, to give a 
layer of oil aprx. 3mm thick on a standard petri dish. This amount
was divided between three people.

At 6:30 pm, we ate a teaspoon of the oil, washing it down
with plenty of water. There was a momentary mild queasiness
as it hit the stomach, which passed quickly. Seven minutes
later, the first effects began, with a mild wave through
the body of relaxation, and mild euphoria. Further teaspoon
doses were taken at 6:45 and 7:00. The pleasant effects
continued to increase in intensity, and were not unlike
a large dose of codeine, although with some numbness and
tingling in the extremities. There were some mild
visual effects, with the world taking on a kind of
sheen or glow.

By about 7:30 pm, a change began to take place. The initial
lightness started to give way to a more heavy intoxication,
with some heaviness in the limbs. It was decided to smoke
a moderately large quantity of marijuana (heads, leaf and
a little hash). At this point, the effects intensified 
significantly. The combination was similar in some ways to a 
modest dose of LSD, although with a strong stoning effect as well.
It could perhaps be compared with a mixture of LSD and a lot
of alcohol. The audio hallucinations were most pronounced, 
and stronger than those of LSD, with changes in the perception 
of distance and direction of sounds, as well as a kind
of phased/flanged effect. 

The Kava effect continued to increase in intensity and change 
in quality over the next few hours, eventually (at about
9pm) leading to a feeling similar to being extremely drunk
and extremely stoned - there was heaviness in the
limbs, lack of coordination, some blurred vision and
difficulty walking. However, nausea was slight, and
there were none of the other problems associated with
excessive alcohol. The brain remained relatively clear
throughout, and through the entire experience there was
a degree of serenity and lack of anxiety. At one stage I 
decided it was too heavy to remain upright, and lay down for 
half an hour, and entered a highly interesting semi-conscious 
state, being almost asleep and thinking freely.

At around 10 pm, the effects began to very slowly decrease in 
intensity, and were still relatively strong at 1:30 am.
Sleep was easy and deep, and I awoke with little residual
effect.

In summary, an acetone extract of Kava seems to be a
most effective way of concentrating the active ingredients
and making ingestion easy. The effect is initially one
of a pleasant euphoric narcosis, followed by a heavier
and less pleasant drunken feeling, particularly in the
body. There is little desire at the end to repeat the
experiment immediately, despite its having been enjoyable.
It enhances the hallucinogenic characteristics of
marijuana, particularly wrt audio hallucinations.

Jeremy
jeremy@rsc3.anu.edu.au (not this address)
Newsgroups: alt.drugs,alt.folklore.urban