Why does boiling Kava Kava root into a tea make me go to sleep?

Question

Why does boiling Kava Kava root into a tea make me go to sleep?

Answer 1

Kava is an ancient western Pacific crop related to the black pepper – both having heart-shaped leaves and flowers similar to the flower spike of the anthurium. Kava also has a peppery taste, and has long been part of religious, political and cultural life throughout the Pacific region. The drink was the beverage of choice for the South Pacific royal families.

It is believed to have originated in Melanesia, and grows abundantly in the sunny Polynesian islands. Drank for hundreds of years by native islanders, it was only during Captain Cook’s voyage to the Pacific in 1768-1771 that the white man first encountered the plant and its consumption in sacred ceremonies. According to his account, natives would chew or pound the root and mix it with water to produce a brownish, often bitter brew which they then consumed for its psychoactive properties.

Common Uses:

sleep, fatigue, asthma, urinary tract infections, anxiety, insomnia, menopausal symptoms

In the Western world, kava is used as an herbal remedy to ease symptoms of anxiety, stress and depression. The effects of drinking kava include slight tongue and lip numbing due to the contraction of blood vessels in these areas, milk talkative and euphoric behavior, calming, a sense of well-being, clear thinking and relaxed muscles. Sleep is restful and there are no after-effects the next day.

Kava has also interestingly been employed by the military in Fiji to aid in vigilance and anxiety reduction, to provide concentration and focus, to provide muscle control before sports and music performances, to reduce anxiety associated with public speaking and other public performances, and in corporate meetings to aid in mental clarity, sociability and improved decision making.

Some indigenous communities in Australia have used kava as a safer alternative to alcohol. Many of these communities have problems with alcohol abuse and related violence.

Preparation Methods:

Kava is traditionally consumed as an herbal tea, produced by straining a mixture of water and shredded, dried, pounded or fresh root and/or stump. It may also be chewed as part of preparation – this will affect the resulting mixture due to enzymes in the saliva.

Pharmacology and Phytochemicals:

Kava is not pharmacologically addictive. Its main ingredients are kavalactones. While kava has been considered relatively safe, some kava herbal supplements may contain pipermethystine from aerial stem peelings which may contribute to rare but severe hepatotoxic reactions to kava.

Answer 2

boiling kava releases the active ingredients from the root much like how when essential oils are boiled away from other plants; kava appears to act on the brain's limbic system, working on the hypothalamus which regulates hormone signals sleep/wakefulness.

Answer 3

Kava Kava is a sleep aid.  It induces relaxation.  So, it would make you want to sleep.  :)

Answer 4

I was going to answer but Peace! said everything I was going to say and then some.