Kudzu
You may not have heard of kudzu, let alone used it, however, you may get the urge to try it after reading this. Kudzu is a climbing plant of the legume family that grows across China and the South Eastern United States.
Kudzu has been used for centuries in Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat thirst, fever, headaches, allergies, migraines, angina, alcoholism and diarrhoea.
The active components of kudzu include isoflavones, such as daidzein, glycosides and puerarin. It is also incredibly alkalizing due to its mineral content. This makes it useful for counteracting the effects of too much acid forming foods such as meat and eggs.
Kudzu can be used in cooking as a thickener as needed. Medicinally, the dose varies from 1.5gms up to 15gms of the root a day.
The Research
Extracts from kudzu root have been shown to inhibit the formation of Advanced Glycation End products (1). These are strongly implicated in ageing and age related chronic disease such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, asthma, arthritis and heart disease.
Isoflavanoids from kudzu have been shown to stimulate the cells that lead to the formation of new bone (2) and to lead to an increase in Bone Mineral Density (3).
Kudzu has been used for centuries in China to counteract alcohol intoxication. There is now research to back up the claim that taking kudzu reduces the amount of alcohol consumed by heavy drinkers (4) as well as reducing withdrawal symptoms (5). It is not known for certain what the mechanism is behind this effect but researchers at Harvard medical school hypothesise that kudzu may speed the rate at which alcohol reaches the brain meaning the effects of alcohol are felt more quickly and this reduces the desire to drink so much alcohol.
Research now also shows that kudzu can have a healing effect on fibrosis of the liver (6) which can result from chronic heavy drinking of alcohol and high cholesterol diets.
Who could benefit from Kudzu?
- Anyone with a gluten or grain intolerance can use kudzu powder as a thickener in soups, stews, sauces and desserts.
- Those wishing to use phytoestrogens to balance their own oestrogen levels such as those with PMS caused by high oestrogen relative to progesterone and menopausal women who may have low oestrogen levels.
- Those wishing to increase their Bone Mineral Density such as those with, or at risk of, osteoporosis or osteopenia.
- Those wishing to delay the effects of ageing and the diseases associated with ageing.
- Those who want to reduce their alcohol consumption and the effects of long term alcohol consumption.
- Those wishing to control their blood sugar as the fibre in kudzu may help to slow the release of sugars from carbohydrates keeping blood sugar more stable.
Why not try some of Gillian's Kudzu Recipes for a healthy treat!
References
1. Kim JM, Lee YM, Lee GY, Jang DS Bae KH, Kim JS. Constituents of the root of Pueraria lobata inhibit formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Arch Pharm Res. 2006 Oct;29(10):821-5
2. Zhang Y, Zeng X, Zhang L, Zheng X. Stimulatory effect of puerarin on bone formation through activation of P13K/Akt pathway in rat calvaria osteoblasts. Planta Med. 2007 Apr;73(4):341-7
3. Zheng G, Zhang X, Meng Q, Gong W, Wen X, Xie H. Protective effect of total isoflavones from Pueraria lobata on secondary osteoporosis induced by dexamethasone in rats. Zhong Yao Cai. 2002 Sep;25(9):643-6
4. Lukas SE, Penetar D, Berko J, Vicens L et al. An extract of the Chinese herbal root kudzu reduces alcohol drinking by heavy drinkers in a naturalistic setting. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2005 May;29(5):756-62
5. Benlhabib E, Baker JI, Keyler DE, Singh AK. Kudzu root extract suppresses voluntary alcohol intake and alcohol withdrawal symptoms in P rats receiving free access to water and alcohol. J Med Food. 2004 Summer ;7(2):168-79
6. Zhang S, Ji G, Liu J. Reversal of chemical-induced liver fibrosis in Wistar rats by puerarin. J Nutr Biochem. 2006 Jul;17(7):485-91
