Kanna acts on the same brain messenger system as common antidepressants. Small trials in healthy volunteers show less anxiety before a single stressful event, better switching between mental tasks, and quicker responses on tasks requiring a decision. Nothing supports a broad mood lift. Main hazards: combining with prescribed antidepressants, and large chemical differences between retail products. (Full Review)
| Marker | Target | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Seated blood pressure | Below 120/80 mmHg | Detects cardiovascular drift the trials did not exclude |
| Resting heart rate | 50–70 bpm | Heart-rate response under stress changed with treatment |
| Serum sodium | 137–142 mmol/L | Serotonin reuptake inhibition can lower sodium |
| ALT | 10–26 U/L (women), 10–30 U/L (men) | Screens for liver strain from concentrated botanical extracts |
| AST | 10–26 U/L | Pairs with ALT to separate liver from muscle origin |
| Morning cortisol | 10–18 µg/dL at 08:00 | Kanna extract suppressed cortisol output in adrenal cell work |
| GAD-7 anxiety score | Below 5 | Tracks the outcome the compound actually targets |
| Sleep-onset latency | Under 20 minutes | The one sleep measure that moved in a controlled trial |
Cadence: Anxiety score weekly for the first month; blood pressure and heart rate rechecked at four weeks; sodium and liver enzymes repeated at three months, then every six to twelve months where use continues.