A single dose of kudzu extract reduces alcohol consumption in a binge drinking paradigm.

BACKGROUND: Overconsumption of alcohol has significant negative effects on an individual's health and contributes to an enormous economic impact on society as a whole. Pharmacotherapies to curb excessive drinking are important for treating alcohol use disorders. METHODS: Twenty (20) men participated in a placebo-controlled, double-blind, between subjects design experiment (n=10/group) that tested the effects of kudzu extract (Alkontrol-Herbal™) for its ability to alter alcohol consumption in a natural settings laboratory. A single dose of kudzu extract (2g total with an active isoflavone content of 520mg) or placebo was administered 2.5h before the onset of a 90min afternoon drinking session during which participants had the opportunity to drink up to 6 beers ad libitum; water and juice were always available as alternative beverages. RESULTS: During the baseline session, the placebo-randomized group consumed 2.7±0.78 beers before treatment and increased consumption to 3.4±1.1 beers after treatment. The kudzu group significantly reduced consumption from 3.0±1.7 at baseline to 1.9±1.3 beers after treatment. The placebo-treated group opened 33 beers during baseline conditions and 38 following treatment whereas the kudzu-treated group opened 32 beers during baseline conditions and only 21 following treatment. Additionally, kudzu-treated participants drank slower. CONCLUSION: This is the first demonstration that a single dose of kudzu extract quickly reduces alcohol consumption in a binge drinking paradigm. These data add to the mounting clinical evidence that kudzu extract may be a safe and effective adjunctive pharmacotherapy for alcohol abuse and dependence.

Cognitive behavioral therapy and the nicotine transdermal patch for dual nicotine and cannabis dependence: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: We assessed the feasibility of a new cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) manual, plus transdermal patch nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), to treat co-occurring nicotine and cannabis dependence. METHOD: Seven of 12 (58.3%) adults with DSM-IV diagnoses of both nicotine and cannabis dependence completed 10 weeks of individual CBT and NRT. RESULTS: Participants smoked 12.6 ± 4.9 tobacco cigarettes per day at baseline, which was reduced to 2.1 ± 4.2 at the end of treatment (F[5] = 23.5, p < .0001). The reduction in cannabis use from 10.0 ± 5.3 inhalations per day at baseline to 8.0 ± 5.3 inhalations per day at 10 weeks was not significant (F[5] = 1.12, p = .37). There was a significant decrease from the mean baseline Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence scores at weeks 4, 6, 8, and 10 of treatment (F[4] = 19.8, p < .001) and mean Client Satisfaction Questionnaire scores were uniformly high (30.6 ± 1.9). CONCLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: A CBT plus NRT treatment program significantly reduced tobacco smoking but did not significantly reduce cannabis use in individuals with co-occurring nicotine and cannabis dependence. There was no compensatory increase in cannabis use following the reduction in tobacco smoking, suggesting that clinicians can safely pursue simultaneous treatment of co-occurring nicotine and cannabis dependence. The intervention was well-liked by the 7 of the 12 enrollees who completed the study.