Kava for anxiety and depression

Kava is a medicinal plant from the South Pacific. Researchers from the University of Queensland in Australia have been looking into its effectiveness in treating depression and anxiety and have come up with encouraging results. The study compared kava to a placebo and found that kava dramatically decreased anxiety levels and had a positive impact on reducing depression. Kava was banned in Europe, the U.K. and Canada in 2002 because it can cause liver problems but this study used a different method of extracting the medicine from the plant which should avoid these difficulties.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090511122619.htm