Piper methysticum
Plant · Piperaceae
Piper methysticum suits individuals with skin disorders (leprosy, ichthyosis), urinary inflammation, and marked muscular weakness with a drowsy, dreamy mental state. There is an unusual amelioration of pain from diverting attention.
Key symptoms
- Silent, drowsy intoxication with incoherent dreams
- Loss of muscular power; hands feel paralyzed
- Burning during micturition; gonorrhea and gleet with chordee
- Scaly skin with white spots after scaling, often ulcerating
- Leprosy and ichthyosis
- Colic with flatulence
- Very sensitive; restless desire to change position
Better (amelioration)
- Turning the mind to another topic
- Changing position
Kava-kava
The intoxication produced by Kava is of a silent and drowsy character with incoherent dreams, loss of muscular power.
Urinary and skin symptoms have been verified. Marked modality. Arthritis deformans. Colic with flatulence.
Mind
Very sensitive. Exaltation of mind. Amelioration of pains for a time by diverting attention. Restless desire to change position.
Urine
Increased. Burning during micturition, gonorrhœa, and gleet. Cystitis. Chordee.
Skin
Scaly. Fall of scales leaves white spots, which often ulcerate. Leprosy. Ichthyosis.
Extremities
Pain in right arm. Hands feel paralyzed. Pain in thumb-joint.
Relationship
Compare: Chaulmoogra-Taraktogenos--(The oil and its derivatives are to a certain extent effective in the treatment of leprosy, especially in early cases).
Bixa orellana, a South American plant related to Chaulmoogra, recommended for leprosy, eczema and elephantiasis.
Modalities
Better, by turning mind to another topic; changing position.
Dose
Tincture, and lower potencies.
Macropiper methysticum. Ava. Kava-kava. Kawa. N. O. Piperaceæ. Tincture of fresh root.
Clinical
Albuminuria. Anus, prolapse of. Brachialgia. Brain-fag. Catalepsy. Cystitis. Dysuria. Eczema. Gonorrhœa. Headache. Head, enlarged feeling. Ichthyosis. Leprosy. Neuralgia. Neurasthenia. Orchitis. Paraplegia. Prostatorrhœa. Rheumatism. Toothache. Urethritis. Uric acid, excess of.
Characteristics
Piper methysticum (it is called Macropiper methysticum in most recent botanical works, but I retain the older name by which it is best known in homœopathy) furnishes the root called Kava in Polynesia. The natives use it as a stimulant, either chewing the root or drinking a beverage made of it before undertaking any important business or religious rites. Excessive indulgence in it produces a skin disease like leprosy, called at Tahiti Arevareva. Lutz (quoted H. W., xxviii. 175) describes the disease as observed amongst natives of the Sandwich Islands: "The skin, particularly that of the extremities, assumes the appearance …
Phatak's chapter on Piper methysticum is available in the app.
Read Phatak in the appClassical texts are in the public domain. Educational reference only — not medical advice.
