I have been drinking kava for almost 10 years. I know people who have been drinking it for longer then that. We sometimes drink large amounts on a daily basis. As of yet and there are lots od us. I do not know anyone with liver failure. However, you are not suppose to mix kavawith alcohol or certain prescriptions that are toxic to the liver. The other problemthe liver failure that is being related to kava can also be from the source addinf in the stems and leaves of the plant which are toxic. Only the root is safe.it was banned in several european countries after some pharmaceutical companies used those parts of the plants and nade people I'll. The other problem with supplement pills and even buying kava to drink as a supplement is you don't know what is being put in to it. Esp. With pills there might not even be kava I the oilll becase there is no regulation. So go drink kava and be happy.

This is because the funding was cut BUT it's now returning.

The following latest research (2010) has conclusively proved the liver damage was caused because of several reasons including extraction techniques (using acetone/ethanol which cause the extraction of chemicals known as Flavokawains A, B and C among other dangerous steps taken by companies 2001/200, resulting in damage to people and kava's good name.

There are many scientific studies and research papers that support kava's status as something that helps not hinders health. Pubmed.gov is a good place to start.

All this along with the fact that Kava has been consumed for over three thousand years in Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia with generally healthy if not usually healthier populations, defeats any 'adverse effect' claims on kava entirely.

Here is an abstract for the above statement I have just made.

Kava (Piper methysticum Foster, Piperaceae)
organic solvent-extract has been used to treat mild to moderate
anxiety, insomnia, and muscle fatigue in Western
countries, leading to its emergence as one of the 10 bestselling
herbal preparations. However, several reports of
severe hepatotoxicity in kava consumers led the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration and authorities in Europe to restrict
sales of kava-containing products. Herein we demonstrate
that flavokawain B (FKB), a chalcone from kava root,
is a potent hepatocellular toxin, inducing cell death in
HepG2 (LD5015.30.2 M) and L-02 (LD5032 M)
cells. Hepatocellular toxicity of FKB is mediated by induction
of oxidative stress, depletion of reduced glutathione
(GSH), inhibition of IKK activity leading to NF-B transcriptional blockade, and constitutive TNF--independent activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways, namely, ERK, p38, and JNK. We further demonstrate by noninvasive bioluminescence imaging that oral consumption of FKB leads to inhibition of hepatic NF-B
transcriptional activity in vivo and severe liver damage. Surprisingly, replenishment with exogenous GSH normalizes
both TNF--dependent NF-B as well as MAPK signaling
and rescues hepatocytes from FKB-induced death. Our data
identify FKB as a potent GSH-sensitive hepatotoxin, levels of
which should be specifically monitored and controlled in
kava-containing herb products.

-Zhou, P., Gross, S., Liu,
J.-H., Yu, B.-Y., Feng, L.-L., Nolta, J., Sharma, V., Piwnica-
Worms, D., Qiu, S. X. Flavokawain B, the hepatotoxic
constituent from kava root, induces GSH-sensitive oxidative
stress through modulation of IKK/NF-B and MAPK signaling
pathways. FASEB J. 24, 000-000 (2010).

www.fasebj.org