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Kava or kava kava (Piper methysticum: Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. [1] The name kava is from Tongan and Marquesan, meaning 'bitter.’ [1] Other names for kava include ʻawa (), [2] ʻava (), yaqona or yagona (), [3] sakau (), [4] seka (), [5] and malok or malogu (parts of Vanuatu). [6]
Kavalactones are a class of lactone compounds found in kava roots and Alpinia zerumbet (shell ginger). [1] and in several Gymnopilus, Phellinus and Inonotus fungi. [2] Some kavalactones are bioactive. They are responsible for the psychoactive, analgesic, euphoric and sedative effects of kava. [3] [4]
This is a list of species and genera that are used as entheogens or are used in an entheogenic concoction (such as ayahuasca). For ritualistic use they may be classified as hallucinogens . The active principles and historical significance of each are also listed to illustrate the requirements necessary to be categorized as an entheogen.
Tongan kava ceremonies are a variety of ceremonies involving the kava plant that play an integral part of Tongan society and governance.They play a role in strengthening cultural values and principles, solidifying traditional ideals of duty and reciprocity, reaffirming societal structures, and entrenching the practice of pukepuke fonua (lit. "tightly holding onto the land"), a Tongan cultural ...
Methysticin is one of the six major kavalactones found in the kava plant. [1] Research suggests that methysticin and the related compound dihydromethysticin have CYP1A1 inducing effects which may be responsible for their toxicity. [2]
Kava may also be used as an herbal remedy, where it is currently regulated by the Dietary Supplements Regulations. In 2023, the Code was amended to significantly reduce the legal ability of Kava in Australia; however, the New Zealand government decided not to adopt the amendment, on the grounds that doing so interfered with the cultural rights ...
Kavain has anticonvulsive properties, attenuating vascular smooth muscle contraction through interactions with voltage-dependent Na + and Ca 2+ channels. [1] How this effect is mediated, and to what extent this mechanism is involved in the anxiolytic and analgesic effects of kavalactones on the central nervous system, is unknown.
The Samoan word ʻava (pronounced with the glottal stop) is a cognate of the Polynesian word kava associated with the kava cultures in Oceania. Both terms are understood in Samoa. The ʻava ceremony within Samoan culture retains the same ritual pattern with slight variations depending on the parties involved and the occasion.