Kudzu

Species Name: Pueraria lobata.

Other Names Known By: Mile a Minute Vine.

What is Kudzu: Kudzu has long been cooked as food in China, and also is used as an herb in traditional Chinese medicine.

In the United States, kudzu was intentionally planted and cultivated in hopes of its being used as a food source for animals, and in hopes it would control soil erosion in high risk areas, but it has become an invasive pest.

Incredibly hardy and fast growing, Kudzu rapidly spread throughout the South. It can literally grow up to a foot every day in the summer, taking over telephone poles, yards, trees, and anything stationary in its path.

Traditional methods of controlling weed and vine growth using systemic weed killers do not seem to be particularly effective on kudzu. It seems the best method for controlling kudzu is to pull it up at first sight, and destroy it by burning it.

Home remedies using kudzu:

Benefits of Kudzu:

Besides cooking with it, feeding it to animals, and weaving baskets from the vines, kudzu may also be useful in treating alcoholism.

A tea brewed from kudzu root is believed to be useful in sobering up people who are intoxicated by alcohol. Taking the hint, a 1993 study evaluated the effects of kudzu in Syrian golden hamsters, a species of hamster known to prefer alcohol to water, but administration of kudzu reversed the animals' preference.

This animal study, along with another one involving rats led to widespread speculation that kudzu may be useful in the treatment of human alcoholism

Uses of Kudzu:

In academic Chinese herbology, kudzu is used differently. One herbal formula containing kudzu is used for the treatment of colds accompanied by pain in the neck. However, there is no scientific evidence that it is effective for this condition.

Kudzu contains isoflavones similar to those found in soy. These substances are known to have an estrogen-like effect. On this basis, kudzu has been proposed as a treatment for menopausal symptoms.

Studies indicate that kudzu root tea can ease the desire for alcohol in alcoholics.

Kudzu can be cooked and eaten, made into a tea, or taken in tablet form.

Side Effects of Kudzu:

Based on kudzu's extensive history as a food source, kudzu is believed to be safe.

As always, safety in young children, pregnant or nursing women, or those with severe kidney or liver disease has not been established, and anyone with any serious health problem should consult a health care professional.