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Research has found that kudzu can help reduce hot flashes and night sweats, as well as improve sleep quality. If I had been committed to using it to wean off of alcohol and then quit, it might have been a very valuable part of my recovery. I did not know at the time that people also use it to treat alcohol withdrawal symptoms; nor did I care, because I did not intend to quit at the time. In one small study of postmenopausal women, transient negative profiles including anemia and liver profiles (5). In humans, benefits from kudzu on hot flashes, night sweats, and cognitive function are also attributed to isoflavones (5) (6).
- Previous work in this laboratory on the stance stability test has indicated that kudzu alone does not alter this behavior (unpublished results).
- One such resource is AlcoholAwareness.org, which offers a wealth of information, support, and guidance for individuals and their families dealing with alcoholism.
- In animal studies, feeding with kudzu root suppressed alcohol intake and withdrawal symptoms (4).
- Syringes were changed every 5 minutes and the blood was put into Vacutainer® tubes containing K3EDTA (12 mg) as anticoagulant and placed on ice.
Psychomotor (stance stability/body sway) and cognitive function were most affected at 60 minutes, and they too returned to or were close to baseline by 3 hours. Heart rate and skin temperature effects were collected only for the first 10 minutes after drinking because that was the only period during which the participants were sitting calmly and not required to perform any tasks (and thus offered artifact-free data). During this time, alcohol increased heart rate consistent with previous reports (Kouri et al., 2004; Penetar et al., 2009). Studies of kudzu in humans are limited and have mostly focused on its effects on alcohol consumption or climacteric symptoms. In heavy drinkers, data suggest kudzu may be a useful adjunct to reduce alcohol intake (9) (19) (23). In moderate drinkers, it was shown to not disturb sleep wake/cycles, as can occur during withdrawal or with other medications that treat dependence (20).
Kudzu Extract Treatment Does Not Increase the Intoxicating Effects of Acute Alcohol in Human Volunteers
The last study above was designed to test the hypothesis that kudzu accelerates the subjective experience of alcohol intoxication. If this were the primary effect of kudzu increasing blood flow, then subjects should feel more intoxicated with fewer drinks after taking it. In 2012, I ordered some high-quality organic kudzu capsules after reading about the potential for it to curb alcohol consumption. I took several capsules per day before drinking, and went through all of it in about one month. According to traditional Chinese medicine, this plant has cooling properties that balance the heat and false energy created by alcohol. In vitro, kudzu has demonstrated antiproliferative (1), anti-inflammatory (3), and neuroprotective (16) (18) properties.
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The arrowroot starch derived from the Kudzu plant is also used in cooking as a thickener. The plant contains phytoestrogens, which are compounds that mimic the effects of estrogen in the body. Reach out to healthcare providers, counselors, and support groups to develop a comprehensive treatment plan tailored to your needs. Remember that every individual’s journey to recovery is unique, and what works for one person may not work for another.
In that study, however, we did find evidence of an initial more rapid rise in blood alcohol levels in kudzu-treated individuals, suggesting that isoflavones may alter bioavailability of alcohol to the brain during the ascending alcohol absorption phase. This interpretation of kudzu’s possible mechanism of action was also suggested by Wong et al. (2011) who postulated that kudzu alters peripheral and cerebral blood flow. Puerarin, one of the most abundant isoflavones in kudzu root extracts, is a known vasodilator and is approved for such use in China following coronary infarction and stroke (Wu et al., 2014). 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.
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. There are several species of kudzu and both the flowers and root extract are used for their medicinal properties. Isoflavones, the major components of kudzu, are thought to be responsible for its potential effects. Sporadic missing data from the actiwatches were filled in from the back up daily diary data. Missing data points within the treatment weeks in non dropout participants were Missing Completely at Random and so were imputed using multiple regression. A total of 42 out of 532 data points in the kudzu extract group and 26 out of 357 data points in the placebo group were handled this way, corresponding to 7.9% and 7.3% of the data, respectively.
2 Behavioral and Subjective Effects
The maximal possible observations were based on the number of side effect categories that were recorded, multiplied by the number of study days in each phase, which was then multiplied by the number of subjects participating in each study phase. The overall incidence of side effects (e.g., headaches, shakes, chills, nausea, etc.) in both groups ranged between 1.7 and 3%. None of the study participants reported any insomnia, sedation, dizziness, blurred vision, tinnitus, or altered libido. While kudzu root has a long history in traditional Chinese medicine, people most often use it to help treat alcohol dependence. It’s important to note that these studies used kudzu extract, which may have contained other parts of the kudzu plant besides the root.
In addition, and perhaps of greater significance, is the possibility that ethanol levels rose more quickly at the higher dose of alcohol (0.7 g/kg) following kudzu pretreatment compared to placebo pretreatment. One interpretation of this finding is that kudzu extract does not potentiate the intoxicating effects of alcohol, but only hastens the onset of action in a dose-response fashion. https://sober-house.net/ In our previous study we demonstrated that the same kudzu extract used in the present study significantly reduced beer consumption in binge-drinkers (Lukas et al., 2005). The significance of the effects on the early plasma ethanol levels and the effects on heart rate and skin temperature offer some insight to the potential mechanism of action of kudzu extract in that study.
In spite of the compelling preclinical and clinical evidence of its efficacy, the precise mechanism of action of kudzu in reducing alcohol consumption is not currently known. Prior studies of its antidipsotropic effect have focused on taste-aversion, alterations in alcohol metabolism or effects on neurotransmitters. Overstreet et al.’s (1998) study provides cursory evidence that a taste aversion mechanism is not likely. Other investigators have focused on possible alterations in alcohol metabolism through a blockade of aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity as, at least one of the major isoflavone components of kudzu, daidzin, is a reversible inhibitor of the ALDH2 enzyme (Keung et al., 1993). Increases in 5-HIAL have been shown to be correlated with decreased alcohol consumption in hamsters (Keung et al., 1995).
Ultimately, a comprehensive approach to health and well-being, including evidence-based treatments, remains paramount. 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. I recall feeling a very slight prickly feeling in my skin after I’d had a few drinks, and a mild head rush. Data from the actiwatch device was the primary source for all analyses while the daily diary served as a back up to verify daily totals and in case of equipment failure.
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. Kudzu is a natural remedy that has been used for centuries in Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat alcoholism.
To preserve the double-blind, kudzu and placebo capsules were repacked into #00 opaque capsules (Apothecary Products, Minneapolis, MN). Morning and evening sets of capsules also contained a 25 mg tablet of riboflavin (vitamin B2) and the afternoon sets contained an additional placebo capsule, in addition to the two kudzu extract capsules, in order to maintain a uniform number (3) of capsules. Capsule sets were individually packaged in small envelopes and marked on the outside with crack withdrawal timeline date and time of day to be consumed. Medication adherence was measured using ultraviolet (UV) light to detect riboflavin in centrifuged urine samples (Del Boca et al., 1996) that were collected twice a week. Endogenous levels of riboflavin are too low to fluoresce and participants were instructed to avoid multivitamin complexes while participating in the study. Because riboflavin is cleared from the body quickly, fluorescing urine indicated compliance in the past 18–24 hours.
A recent systematic review of P. mirifica regarding efficacy for menopausal symptoms is inconclusive (27). In addition, another systematic review determined that evidence on benefits for any condition with various species of kudzu are limited and unclear (28). Short-term effects on blood and liver tests occurred in a small study of postmenopausal women.
