Kudzu cuts drinkers' thirst

[zl00j]

(See Google News for lots more like the following)

ATLANTA - Kudzu, the fast-spreading weed also known as the "vine that ate the South," contains chemicals that reduce the urge of binge-drinkers and alcoholics, as well as casual imbibers, to ask for that second, third or fourth drink, Harvard Medical Center researchers report in what is being called a groundbreaking study.

Their research suggests that kudzu compounds called isoflavones are keys to treating intoxication. Heavy drinkers who took pills made from chemicals in kudzu seemed to lose their urge to order a second or third drink or, at the least, extended the time between ordering additional drinks.

"We want to develop a medication that would be effective and safe, and pills without side effects like other drugs on the market (for treating alcoholics and binge-drinkers)," said the lead researcher, Dr. Scott E. Lukas, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and director of behavior psychopharmacology at McLean Hospital in nearby Belmont, Mass.

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Harvard and McLean own the patents on the discovery, and Lukas speculated it may be several years before alcohol-resistance pills are developed. That depends on whether the pills will need approval by the Food and Drug Administration or can be sold as an herbal remedy, which wouldn't require the government's OK.

The study was done with 11 men and women, all of whom consume an average of 25 alcoholic drinks a week, who spent six hours over a six-week period in a studio apartment, complete with satellite TV and a refrigerator filled with their favorite brews.

They were told to drink as much as they pleased for 90 minutes and then go home. Sometimes they were given kudzu pills and other times placebos.

"Eight drank fewer beers while receiving kudzu vs. placebo treatment, two drank the same number of beers, and one drank one more beer," Lukas said.

David Overstreet, a researcher in the Center for Alcohol Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, called the study "groundbreaking" but said it needs to be replicated.

Scientists have shown that kudzu extracts reduce alcohol craving in rats but never before in humans, said Raye Litten of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

People in China have been using kudzu to treat a variety of problems, from rashes and obesity to alcoholism and hangovers, for at least 1,600 years. Liver tonics and pills made from kudzu and kudzu roots are available in health food stores everywhere.

The runaway vine, brought to this country from China in 1876, was originally popular as a shade plant but was demoted to weed status in 1972 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Lukas said he is not recommending that people chew on kudzu leaves or roots before going to parties.

A lot of the kudzu-based herbal remedies contain minced pieces of the plant but little of the ingredients that seem to fight drinking urges.

[Torsten]

Very exciting research. It also means that you can pop a few kudzu pills and then get smashed on a couple of beers. Perfect for the struggling uni student

[coin]

i thought i had read that dosing with kudzu before drinking would mean that you get instant "hangover chemistry" happening, instead of the delayed toxicity, and this reduces the tendency to want to drink any more .. ?

[Torsten]

well, this batch of research seemed to indicate that people drank less because they were happy with the state achieved on less.

[mescalito]

Interesting, back in my bingeing days I started drinking a kudzu and gingko drink the morning after a big night which seemed to fix me up....damn I miss binge drinking!

[Thelema]

Happy with the state of affairs, not necessarily happy IN the state of intoxication (ie. subjectively drunker than usual)

The experiment doesn't even mention the participants happiness or subjective feelings at the effect. silly scientists!

[nabraxas]

yeah, you'd think they'd do interviews after specifically asking those who drank less on kudzu

"Why?" :confused:

[Chemical Shaman]

I remember when I was a teenager I used to buy a kudzu based drink for hangovers after big nights drinking. It was called "Feeling Seedy?" hahaha, I think I just liked the name and packaging more than anything else.

I remember it actually worked really really well for hangovers.

-Chemical Shaman