Kudzu Extract for the Treatment of Alcoholism

August 2000; Volume 3; 91-94

By Susan T. Marcolina, MD

In 1998, 15,935 deaths in the united states were attributed to alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents, accounting for 38% of all traffic fatalities.¹ Alcohol-impaired driving resulted in more than 16,000 injuries and 463 deaths annually among passengers aged 14 years and younger.²

The resultant call for adopting a zero tolerance policy for alcohol-impaired driving³ has necessitated seeking effective treatment strategies for patients with alcoholism. One component of such a strategy would be the development of a drug to decrease ethanol craving. Kudzu, administered as the root extract, may play an important role in this regard.

History

Kudzu (Pueraria lobata) is a perennial vine, best known as a destructive nuisance weed in the southeastern United States where its prolific growth causes damage to farmland as it chokes out other vegetation. It is a member of the legume or pea family and is native to eastern Asia.

Kudzu’s showy purple flowers have a fragrance similar to grapes, which made it popular as an ornamental when it was first introduced to the United States by Japan at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876. It subsequently was cultivated for use as a hay and fodder crop and for control of soil erosion; however, it is no longer used for these purposes.⁴

Historical Medicinal Usage

Kudzu is believed to have its origins in China, where its tuberous root, known as Ge-gen, has been considered a valuable part of the traditional medicine for two millennia. Two classic traditional Chinese medical texts, The Internal Book of Huang Di and Shang Han Lun, reference the use of tea made from kudzu root (Radix puerariae or RP) for stiffness, neck and eye pain, and fevers as far back as 200 BC.

Both kudzu’s flowers (Flos puerariae or FP) and roots have been used for the treatment of alcohol-related problems. The initial documented use of kudzu was for acute alcohol intoxication (Sun Simiao, circa 600 AD) and later for alcohol dependence (Li Dongyuan, circa 1200 AD).⁵

Current Practices to Prevent Relapses

Table 1 lists the current pharmacologic therapies used for the prevention of relapse in alcoholism. The Food and Drug Administration approved the first two medications, disulfiram and naltrexone, as adjunctive treatments to prevent relapse in alcohol-dependent patients. Acamprosate (calcium bisacetylhomotaurinate) has been evaluated extensively in European studies as an adjunctive agent for treating alcohol dependence.⁶