Kava Kava now illegal in the US?

[Nahbus]

SWIM went to this store to find some Kava kava. Nothing new. Anyway... they told me that very recently it has been made illegal and taken off the shelves.
Is this true? Did this clerk know what he was talking about?
If so... this is a crying shame.

[jesusfreak666er]

to swims knowledge it is not illegal anywhere in the us, salvia is illegal in a few delaware and such but to his knowledge it is quite legal, placed an order about a month ago fine.

[snapper]

Maybe it is a state law rather than a federal one ?

[ironmics]

Originally Posted by Nahbus

SWIM went to this store to find some Kava kava. Nothing new. Anyway... they told me that very recently it has been made illegal and taken off the shelves.
Is this true? Did this clerk know what he was talking about?
If so... this is a crying shame.

It was taken off the shelves for a bit to investigate the reports of severe liver damage, but I believe everything was pretty negative with that.

[snapper]

The liver damage was implicated in regular use of EXTRACTS only, not whole root, though not fully substantiated, SWIM would be cautious about regular use or use with liver stressors like alcohol or acetominophen.

[bman1]

Another very popular question is the question; “Is Kava legal?” The short answer is, “Yes, in most parts of the world!” At the time of this writing, Germany had a ban on Kava since 2001, but they are repealing that ban in early 2006. Canada still has a ban in place, as does the United Kingdom, but that, for the most part is all we are aware of.

Also, is kava legal in the United States? Yes again. Kava was the subject of a public health advisory issued by FDA on March 25, 2002, which advised consumers of the "potential" risk of liver damage resulting from the. use of kava. But, this warning came as a result of the German study, and not the result of testing by the FDA, and led to a kava ban in the United States.

After studies began to surface regarding the safety of kava and its possible potential for helping a few key complaints such as anxiety and pain, the FDA relaxed its stance, and allowed the importation and sales of Kava products as dietary supplements, once again. So, yes, that means that anyone in the United States can legally buy kava anytime, anywhere, legally.

As found in the article titled "Kava Hepatotoxicity: Are we any closer to the truth?" by Anke J, Ramzan I, he states; "In recent years, kava kava has been implicated in a number of liver failure cases. Ever since this has kept the scientific world busy. Even though, on closer inspection, the majority of the case reports are probably not connected to kava intake..."*

Stores in the United States were slow to add this product back to their shelves because of the lingering belief that Kava was dangerous to the body.

Reputation Comments on this post:

Very consice and well constructed report!

[snapper]

Also, all cases of toxicity were people who used extracts long term. None will whole root. The thought is that a component of the root counteracts the hepatotoxicity.

[Forthesevenlakes]

swim had a similar problem finding kava kava in stores. he believes that it was taken off the shelves of most grocery stores and vitamin shops. however, it does not seem to be illegal to buy, just increasingly difficult to find.

[Riconoen {UGC}]

swim was wondering why he couldnt find kava anywhere in stores and he finally asked the phmacist and he siad they've taken it off the market. so it's porbably been scheduled. damn drug warriors. we got to keep shit like that from happening again.

[jesusfreak666er]

swim has heard that its only the non root portions that cause liver damage, and there for extracts that say only root r safe, but then again this is being said by companies that plan to profit off of the sales of these products so who knows...

[Raw edge]

I would just like to add that Kava Kava is illegal in Ireland.

[acolon_5]

Most, but not all stores, that SWIM has gone to do not sell Kava Kava any more. One vendor told SWIM that college kids were shooting it up...LMAO... wow, people without information can be foolish, but people with horribly wrong infomations (espically LEO's) are just plain dangerous.

No, Kava is still 100% legal, and should remain that way indefinitely (god we hope!)

[Nicaine]

It's worth noting that there weren't that many cases of liver problems, but many of the cases in question involved liver destruction and a need for transplants. Given that fact, some many not want to risk Kava until they determine for sure if it was the stem/leaf based extracts causing the problems.

[INodHardOhYeah]

Kava Kava world legality taken from Erowid + random sources.

Kava is legal to possess & sell in Australia, but it is illegal to import into Australia without a license, it is "Schedule IV" in the import laws

Britain has banned the sale of all medicines containing kava extracts. We believe raw root powder is still legal for sale, but we aren't sure. It also appears that kava is now banned for import or sale for the purpose of ingestion (internal use): Statutory Instrument 2002 No.3170 : The Medicines for Human Use (Kava-kava) (prohibition) Order 2002 :The Stationery Office Ltd , UK Government E1856 12/02

Canada's federal government agency, Health Canada, issued a stop order blocking the sales of kava products for human consumption in all of canada in August, 2002. As of this ruling, all products containing kava including drinks, supplements, etc have been banned in Canada.

Kava is widely available in Europe but some countries regulate its sale.

Ethiopia: Kava products available with no age limit. unverified

France: Kava supplements and products banned for sale (Seeking Reference). Reportedly, Piper methysticum is still available from herbalists.

After a handful of deaths have been reported from kava-related liver failure, Germany is considering legislation to more tightly regulate its sale.

Netherlands: Kava-containing products have been banned for general sale since jan 01 2003. (unconfirmed but reported by resident) //note: Really? wouldn't have thought that.

New Zealand: Kava-containing supplements sold at grocery stores. (unconfirmed but reported by resident)

Norway: Kava supplements and products are not specifically controlled in Norway, but we have been told that the national health council considers it a prescription drug (available only from a pharmacy) based on it's use as a psychoactive drug.

Switzerland: Laitan, a kavalactone pharmaceutical sold in pharmacies in Europe has been banned for sale in Switzerland

All US GNC stores were instructed to stop selling Kava Kava in December 2002.

Wikipedia: Regulatory drug agencies in France and Switzerland have outlawed kava completely.

Thats all I can find as of now, if SWIANYONE knows more or otherwise let SWIUS know.

[spacecowboy42]

Well, SWIM went out to sew his wild oats and happened to find some Kava while he was at it... so no, it is not illegal at least in the heart of the midwest.

[JapanHorrorUncut]

I live in south FL,US and theres a Kava bar here, so as far as I know it's still legal for now.