WHAT DOES KANNA HELP WITH?
- Helps with low energy
- Suppresses food cravings
- Sleep improvement
- Boosts mood
- Reduces discomfort
- Produces mental clarity
TAKEN FROM HAPPY HIPPO BLOG …
How to use Kanna
Traditionally, local tribes in Africa would take the Kanna plant and put it through a fermentation process to strengthen the effects of the alkaloids. According to folklore, the Khoisan—the first inhabitants of Southern Africa—discovered Kanna’s use. For centuries, the locals claimed that fermenting Kanna changed the alkaloid composition and increased its potency. Now, recent research published in the South African Journal of Botany supports the assertion. The results of the experiment show an increased content of mesembrine after fermentation. So whenever you buy Kanna, look for fermented products, they have a slightly higher alkaloid content.
But how do you take Kanna?
Well, there are several different ways to use it. But we’ll quickly go over the four most popular ways people use Kanna to feel its effects.
- Make Kanna tea
- Use a Kanna extract
- Chewing Kanna
- Make a Kanna tincture
Make Kanna Tea
Out of all the ways to take the botanical supplement, making Kanna tea is the most common. Kanna tea, also known as sunshine tea, consists of mixing the Kanna plant material with hot water to leach the alkaloids from the plant. This also makes it easy to digest.
If you are using natural Kanna tea, then an average serving is about two grams. However, if you use an extract, then measure out anywhere from 200-300 mg. But try using less Kanna on your first time.
After the tea has finished brewing, you can strain the material from the tea. That way, you do not have to ingest all that pulp.
Once you have finished straining the tea, sit back and enjoy. It will take some time before you feel any effects. It can take about an hour, and the tea is stronger if taken on an empty stomach.
Kanna Extract
When shopping for Kanna online, you’ll find lots of products for sale labeled as Kanna extracts, and all of them can be different strengths. Therefore, you must pay attention to the product you’re buying. Some Kanna extracts are marketed as 10x, 20x, or 30x, but you can also find some as strong as 100x or 200x – so you need to understand what they’re selling.
You see, a 10x extract means the product is ten times the strength of the dried herb. A 20x extract is twenty times stronger, and so on. That means one gram of 10x has the same concentration of alkaloids as does ten grams of dried Kanna plant – so measure your serving accordingly.
A Kanna extract is just the finished product from a chemical process that extracts the alkaloids from the plant material, leaving a more condensed version of Kanna. With Kanna extracts, there’s less plant material, which makes extracts useful for consumers with finicky stomachs. Plus, it hits the system more quickly since it’s a concentrated dosage. So you get a bigger bang for your buck. However, like any kind of extract, your tolerance will be impacted quicker and you should take frequent breaks from using the product to avoid any issues down the road.
Chewing Kanna
Over in Southern Africa, the local inhabitants prefer their traditional method for taking Kanna, which is chewing on the fermented plant material, ingesting the plant juices, and spitting it out after they’re finished. The only problem with this method is it calls for freshly fermented Kanna, but most Kanna on the market has been dried. That creates a hurdle for chewing Kanna.
However, sometimes you can find dried whole plant material. If you steep it in water it’ll retain moisture. When the dried plant material is soaked, you can put it in your mouth and chew it, releasing the liquid and swallow it. Then, spit out the remainder of the pulp afterward.
Unfortunately, the whole leaf product is hard to find. So to make this method easier to accomplish, another option is to get creative with the available Kanna powder. Some people have stated they’ve mixed Kanna powder with chewing gum. The sweet flavor of the gum helps to mask the bitter taste of the Kanna. For that method, I would recommend using Kanna extract, so you won’t need as much of it.
