Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Herbal extract kudzu helps cut binge drinking

Health News Article | Reuters.com: "Reuters Health - Heavy drinkers who tried the herbal extract kudzu for one week downed fewer drinks than people who received an inactive placebo treatment, according to new study findings released Monday.

Study author Dr. Scott E. Lukas of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical Center in Massachusetts explained that during the experiment, people drank their first beer right away, but were less likely to want more beer if they had taken kudzu the previous week.

"This means that the first beer must have satisfied their initial desire for alcohol," Lukas suggested.

He said that kudzu may also help deliver blood to the brain, making people more satisfied with less alcohol. "
...researchers asked 14 men and women who averaged 25 drinks per week to try either the concentrated kudzu for one week or a placebo drug. Then each participant visited a small studio apartment, complete with an entertainment center, where they had free access to alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages for 90 minutes.
Participants had to place their drinks on a specially designed end table that measured how quickly they were downing the drink.
After 7 days on either kudzu or the placebo, each participant switched to the other for another 7 days, and returned to the studio apartment.
The investigators found that when people received kudzu, they drank 1.5 fewer beers during their time in the apartment, and took more, smaller sips to finish each drink."

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