The first person to analyse kambo in a lab, an Italian Scientist by the name of Vittorio Erspamer, called it "a fantastic chemical cocktail with potential medical applications, unequalled by any other amphibian". Kambo has since been the subject of nearly three decades of medical research. This work consists of attempting to identify, isolate and reproduce the synergy of kambo's effects.

Examples of naturally occurring peptides in the human body include oxytocin, endorphin and insulin. Such amino acids are often referred to as the building blocks of all human life. As it has been shown that peptides found in mammalian gut and brain tissues have frequent counterparts in amphibian skin, and vice versa, this has led to interest in the potential for humans, such as assortments of peptides, neuropeptides and biopeptides that spur the body's own processes from within.

As noted by David Attenborough, these are a kind of 'anti-bacterial sunscreen' that the frog applies to itself, rather than a poison. Amphibians are a rich source of these - also known as Host Defence Peptides - though none as uniquely attuned to humans as these guys. Because our bodies are inherently familiar with and express such components already, it instinctively accepts and signals these peptides to our benefit (imagine a lock, that when opened with the right key, spurs innate support, rather than direct action like a drug). Thus, downstream benefits relate to things our bodies naturally do themselves, such as pain support, inflammation control, immune system defense, hormone balance support, bacterial / fungal / viral defense, anti-tumor activity (shown in-vivo) and more. It is frequently said to help balance depression anxiety, and emotional hurdles.

In other areas, a double-blind RCT in 1985 demonstrated superiority to morphine with fewer side effects, less tolerance and withdrawl - "it was clear that dermorphin was much more potent and long-lasting compared with morphine" - suggesting a future role to play in the search for new analgesics.

Most fascinating to me though is the synergy of its sum peptide parts. Not only are they seemingly meant to work in unison, but they are proving very difficult to reproduce - complicating efforts to isolate and reproduce the benefits of any one peptide.

Truly, it would be not only exhaustive, but also prohibitive to list all the benefits. Despite the numerous studies and scientific interest shown, it should not be assumed these practises will definitely relieve conditions, serious or otherwise, nor that kambo is necessarily intended for therapeutic purposes.

So if you are interested to get a better picture, you are encouraged to speak with me directly 🐸

🐸 Read more about the science and research behind kambo here 🐸