Kava Tea May Be Linked to Severe Kidney Damage: Doctors

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Some doctors are warning that there may be a risk of kidney damage associated with kava tea, a trendy drink based off a plant from the Pacific islands. 

Doctors from the University of Rochester Medical Center submitted a case study to the American Journal of Emergency Medicine regarding a bicyclist who was diagnosed with a form of kidney failure caused by muscle damage, known as rhabdomyolysis, at Strong Memorial Hospital. The bicyclist recovered, but the doctors were alarmed at the unchecked use of the kava plant across the country.

The kava plant can be found on islands in the western Pacific. It is used in Hawaii for celebrations and sedation for thousands of years. Now, kava tea is spreading in use in the United States as drinkers claim it calms nerves and affects symptoms of menopause.

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Because it is an herbal product, the FDA does not regulate kava. However, the FDA has investigated a number of complaints regarding kava ingestion. In 2002, the FDA warned of the possibility of severe liver damage due to drinking kava.

In recent years, the popularity of kava tea has begun to accelerate. At least three kava bars have opened recently in Palm Beach, Florida.

The bicyclist in the case study told researchers that he drank kava tea a couple times a week to combat anxiety. However, on the day the bicyclist collapsed, he said he had consumed twice as much as usual. He was hospitalized for six days.

The researchers say that kava may cause muscle weakness or muscle toxicity that causes the breakdown of muscle tissue which then travels to the kidneys and does damage. The drug could also have contained a foreign impurity, since the tea is not regulated.

Rhabdomyolysis is a rare muscle condition in which the skeletal muscle is damaged and releases myoglobin into the bloodstream. When it is filtered out by the kidneys, it could cause severe kidney failure or death. Symptoms of Rhabdomyolysis side effects could include:

  • Muscle Cramps
  • Tenderness
  • Stiffness
  • Pain
  • Spasms
Tags: Kava Tea, Kidney, Kidney Failure, Liver Damage, Rhabdomyolysis
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5 Comments

fiji
Im a Fijian and lives in the US. My forefathers been drinking kava for decades and so as my father. None of them died in of liver damage. This is absurd, insane and ridiculous about all this false claims on kava.read this new revelation on kava just came out last Oct/Nov,2013 on www.hawaiianhanahou.com. (check on ROOT MEDICINE) they recommend fresh squeeze kava and not pharmaceutical kavakava tablet. Fresh they found out that not only its a muscle relaxant but cures colon cancer, bladder, leukemia and so as lung cancer esp for smokers. I advice for people to check it out.
Geoff
Hysteria runs rampant in contemporary society; most readers will not dig into the probable reason for the renal problem, although the ‘trendy-ness’ seems to have caused it. Simply, too much demand has caused an inferior product to enter the marketplace – a product that can contain stem/trunk bark and leaves, containing known toxins NOT found in the Kava Root. If the whole plant is rendered into chips, there WILL BE problems. If in doubt, I would rather buy whole roots at a greater price than take a chance; after all, this is NOT a necessity. Finally, consider that bicyclists – athletes in general – have hydration problems, some even making bragging comments about how much water they sweat away during competition, despite the ubiquitous water bottles; and Kava IS a diuretic. At nearly 70, I’ve enjoyed Kava for most of my life. The basic message should be to be aware of what you put in your body, know your source really well, and use some common sense.
Thomas
What complete crap this story is! Ha, ridiculous- Absolutely absurd. Incoherent free associations based upon 0 evidence whatsoever.
anna
im sry to hear that sad info. i to my self have kidney failor n am now on dialysis sense 03-30-11. im 39 yrs old n have a very hard time w/ this. hope things go better..
Andy
I wonder what the agenda behind this “story” is. Kava has been used for thousands of years with no harmful health effects. Let’s hear about alcohol’s effects on liver and kidneys.

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