Reply #75: Are you sure the kava preparation you used was from the root? [View All]

[KamaAina]

NOT the leaves. It has been known in the Pacific for centuries that the leaves of the kava ('awa in Hawaiian) plant are toxic. The extract from the root has been used safely hereabouts for all that time.

Alas, during the recent kava craze, some unscrupulous European suppliers started to add the leaves when they couldn't get the root, with predictable results (i.e. the liver toxicity you describe with the rats). Now kava has been banned in Germany, and Hawai'i farmers who invested in the new crop can't give it away.

edit: It would be the fault of your supplier if your lab ended up with contaminated kava. There would be no way for you to know this short of a VERY sophisticated analysis.