Study Says Kudzu Extract Might Reduce Alcohol Craving : NPR

Interestingly, supplementation of 0.2% kudzu root extract in normal diet for 2 months reduced arterial pressure, body weight, fasting blood glucose, plasma total cholesterol, and insulin levels in both ovariectomized and non-ovariectomized SHR rats (Peng et al, 2009). Excessive intrahepatic triglyceride content in obese persons is a robust marker of metabolic abnormalities. Recent results showed that puerarin significantly decreased the triglyceride and total cholesterol content in liver of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Subjective and psychomotor effects observed after alcohol consumption are typically attributed to be the direct effects of alcohol on the CNS. There are data to suggest that many of these effects may be due, at least in part, to the primary alcohol metabolite, acetaldehyde (Kim et al., 2009).

At the cellular level, DHM treatment antagonized potentiation of GABAA receptors and plasticity. Therefore, DHM could be used as a therapeutic candidate for alcohol use disorders [44,65]. In conclusion, Hovenia dulcis could be a therapeutic candidate for alcohol-induced liver injury and alcohol use disorders. We developed a standardized kudzu extract that preserved the ratio of the major isoflavones found in the raw root, except that the concentration of isoflavones was increased to 25%. Our laboratory has been involved in assessing an extract of the kudzu root (Pueraria lobata) for its ability to reduce alcohol consumption in humans. In the first, kudzu extract was administered for 7 days and acute binge drinking was suppressed (Lukas et al., 2005).

1. It is rich in polyphenolic compounds which could protect from several diseases.
2. In 2012, I ordered some high-quality organic kudzu capsules after reading about the potential for it to curb alcohol consumption.
3. Baicalein at the concentrations of 40–120 μM exerted cytotoxicity to three hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines but with little cytotoxicity to a normal liver cell line in vitro [124].
4. In addition, the IDN 5082 possessed the anti-relapse properties in alcohol preferring rats through complete suppressing of the extra amount of alcohol consumed during the first hour of re-access to alcohol after 7 days of deprivation [113].
5. In terms of what I felt when I took this plant, my experience supports the observations of others who note that it might act like a much gentler form of disulfiram or Antabuse.

If you have any questions about using kudzu recovery for alcoholism, please leave them in the comment box below. In my opinion, the Planetary Herbals brand is a great option for someone who has not yet quit drinking, and who wants to try pure kudzu powder on its own. However, there are a lot of supplements that claim to contain it that are mostly cheap fillers.

The effective constituents might be heteropolysaccharides, which mainly consist of rhamnose, arabinose, galactose and galacturonic acid [63]. In addition, administration of Hovenia dulcis extract increased ADH activity in alcohol-ingesting mice and stimulated alcohol metabolism [64]. Dihydromyricetin (DHM), a flavonoid separated from Hovenia dulcis, was identified to interact with γ-aminobutyric acid receptors and block alcohol intoxication and withdrawal signs in rats such as tolerance, increased anxiety, and seizure susceptibility. DHM could remarkably reduce alcohol digestion in a voluntary alcohol intake paradigm in rats.

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Participants continued to take their medication through the morning of day 9 prior to the alcohol drink challenge. Following the first set of challenge sessions, there was a 1 month ‘washout’ period during which no medication was taken. This washout period provided ample time to eliminate pharmacodynamic interactions between kudzu and placebo treatment conditions. After the one-month washout, a second period of treatment and two drinking challenge days was conducted identical to the first treatment period. Extracts from the roots of Salvia miltiorrhiza could reduce alcohol intake in sP rats.

PPAR is a nuclear receptor that plays a regulatory role in the expression of genes related to preadipocyte differentiation, insulin sensitivity, and inflammation (Xu et al, 2005; Semple et al, 2005). Activation of PPAR enhanced insulin sensitivity and triggered adipogenesis, which is responsible for the reduction of adiposity and release of detrimental adipokines (Chiarelli and Di Marzio, 2008). The concept that a more rapid delivery of alcohol to the brain would result in a decrease (and not an increase) in drinking behavior seems counter intuitive. Admittedly, the magnitude of the change in plasma ethanol levels in the present study is modest and may not be biologically significant, in spite of the observed statistical significance. We are currently engaged in studies employing proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to directly measure whether kudzu extract alters the rate and concentration of alcohol that actually enters the human brain.

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Some common applications include treating fevers and easing symptoms of diabetes. Now kudzu’s popularity is also picking up in the Western world as a wellness supplement. A growing number of double-blind, peer-reviewed studies have confirmed the effectiveness of using kudzu for alcoholism. Early research focused on rats with good results, which were later replicated with human subjects. Natural products for the prevention and treatment of hangover and alcohol use disorder.

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Excessive alcohol consumption caused alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD). The ginger essential oil and citral exhibited hepatoprotective activity against AFLD in mice. The amounts of metabolites in serum such as d-glucurono-6,3-lactone, glycerol-3-phosphate, pyruvic acid, lithocholic acid, 2-pyrocatechuic acid, and prostaglandin El increased after alcohol administration, but the levels were recovered in treatment groups [80]. Therefore, ginger could be used as a candidate to the prevention and treatment of hangover and organ damages induced by overconsumption of alcohol through its antioxidant action. We previously demonstrated that short-term treatment with a standardized kudzu extract (NPI-031) reduced alcohol drinking by men and women in a natural setting. The present study was conducted in nontreatment-seeking heavy drinkers to assess the safety and efficacy of 4 weeks of kudzu extract in an outpatient setting.

HPE (50 and 100 mg/kg) produced positive inhibitory effects on tremor and audiogenic seizures during the withdrawal period in alcohol-preferring rats. These results suggest that HPE could have some beneficial effects on alcohol withdrawal syndrome in people [102]. Hypericum perforatum exhibits remarkable antioxidant potential due to high content of phenolic compounds, especially flavonoids, hyperforin and hypericin [103]. Hyperforin has NMDA-receptor-antagonistic and potential neuroprotective effects in vitro which might provide therapeutic effectiveness in the relapse prevention of alcohol use disorders [103]. In addition, hyperforin could reduce alcohol intake more effectively than hypericin in alcohol-dependent mice [104]. The CO2 extract of hypericum has been also shown to mediate alcohol intake in msP rats.

May reduce alcohol dependence

In 1991, Dr Lee collaborated with researchers at the Chinese University of Shin-Yanget to test the effects of kudzu tea. Researchers bought a variety of Kudzu extracts from stores and Internet sites. Giving new cafe opens in germantown to support those who are recovering a Kudzu root extract twice daily failed to reduce craving and sobriety scores. As with any treatment, you should consult your physician first before seeking to incorporate medicine into your diet.

Two hours before the first visit, we gave both sub-groups a pill – neither group knew whether they were getting the supplement or the placebo. When they visited the bar, beer, spirits and white wine were freely available. The amount of alcohol consumed was calculated for each group (1 unit per drink of beer or spirits, 1.6 units per glass of wine). And so after that week of treatment, when they came to the lab, we measured their drinking using a very specialized table that we had developed that actually has a scale built into it. And the table actually weighs the mug of beer, and each time they took a sip, we could actually see how much they were consuming each time. A prior study of kudzu to treat alcohol use in an outpatient setting reported that kudzu had no effect on maintaining sobriety or altering alcohol craving (Shebek and Rindone, 2000).

For targeting alcohol dependence, studies have used dosages of 1.2 grams of kudzu root extract per day over 1 week, or a single dose of 2 grams before drinking alcohol, without noted side effects (3, 19). There is some evidence that kudzu root dietary supplements may cause liver injury. One study in mice found that taking 10 mg per day of kudzu root extract for 4 weeks caused liver toxicity (15). Furthermore, is alcoholism considered a disease kudzu root has demonstrated potential benefits for heart health, diabetes management, antioxidant protection, and alleviating menopausal symptoms. However, further research is necessary to fully comprehend the effects of kudzu on the body. Kudzu is a botanical used in traditional medicine to treat alcoholism, cardiovascular disease, menopausal symptoms, diabetes, fever, the common cold, and neck or eye pain.

Kudzu in reducing alcohol drinking

Medication compliance was determined by repeated monitoring of urinary fluorescence20 as well as daily diary reports of pill taking. The sample size was relatively small; however, a repeated measures, crossover design was used with participants as their own control receiving multiple pretreatments, each with placebo and alcohol challenges. The present study did not include a treatment condition to specifically analyze the effects of kudzu alone in the absence of any challenge drink. Previous work in this laboratory on the stance stability test has indicated that kudzu alone does not alter this behavior (unpublished results). In the current study, the effects of kudzu pretreatment alone were analyzed through a comparison of results on the 1st challenge day (‘day 8’). This experimental day was always a placebo drink but after either a week of treatment with placebo or kudzu extract.

Persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) is a fruit containing high levels of phenolics that could be used for making vinegar. Administration of persimmon-vinegar provided a protection to metabolic disorders induced by chronic alcohol ingestion in rats. It obviously decreased serum triglyceride, total cholesterol and liver total cholesterol levels. The liver non-esterified carnitine building alcohol tolerance level was increased in the persimmon-vinegar-administered groups, which means a protection of lipid oxidation. In addition, the blood alcohol concentration was the lowest in high-dose persimmon-vinegar-administered group [71]. In addition, the administration of the extract from leaf and fruit of persimmon suppressed acute alcohol-induced hepatotoxicity in mice.

They also demonstrated that cellular toxicity induced by alcohol was relieved after treatment with the extracts of Asparagus officinalis leave and shoots. Additionally, the activities of two key enzymes that metabolize alcohol, ADH and ALDH, increased after treatment of leaf and shoot extracts [82]. As a result, Asparagus officinalis might be used as a natural product to prevent and treat hangover through increasing alcohol metabolism by upregulating the activities of ADH and ALDH.