Case-control study of the association between kava use and ischaemic heart disease in Aboriginal communities in eastern Arnhem Land (Northern Territory) Australia.

K ava, (Piper methysticum Forst. f., ‘‘Intoxicating pepper’’), is a consciousness-changing muscle relaxant consumed in the Pacific islands and, since 1982, by indigenous Australians in eastern Arnhem Land (Northern Territory, NT) using dried powder imported from Fiji or Tonga. Very heavy use was widespread in Arnhem Land during the 1990s. Circumstantial evidence suggests that kava consumption is associated with ischaemic heart disease (IHD) and sudden cardiac deaths among, particularly, young Aboriginal sportsmen in this population.