Effects of Kava Use

Kava is a depressant substance that produces a mild sedative effect on the user. Traditionally, people make it into a drink by adding cold water or coconut milk to the ground roots of a pepper plant called Piper methysticum.

Historically, this drink has longstanding cultural, ceremonial and medicinal uses in the Pacific Islands. In the 1990s, kava became popular in the United States in beverage and supplement forms due to its relaxing and intoxicating properties.