Kava as a Pharmacotherapy of Anxiety Disorders: Promises and Concerns

Abstract

Current standard pharmacotherapies for anxiety management come with a host of side-effects that may deter the patients from utilizing them. Kava, a traditional beverage from the South Pacific region, has been used as a natural medicine for centuries and has been hypothesized to contain anxiolytic properties. There are a few well-designed, randomly controlled trials that have evaluated the effectiveness of kava or its constituents against anxiety disorders. They have generally shown kava to be effective in managing the disease. However, there has been a serious concern about the hepatotoxic risk of kava, which greatly limits its anxiolytic development and application. This review attempts to summarize the recent anxiolytic trials using kava, the associated hepatotoxicity risks, the potential responsible chemicals for these two activities, and the mechanisms of action. Overall, kava has a great potential to be developed as a natural anxiolytic agent through a systematic approach, but the present form should be used with caution.