We parents have quite the challenge on our hands these days. When it comes to drug use, no longer can we concern ourselves with simply teaching kids about the dangers of illicit substances and how to avoid them.
Now we have to dive headfirst down the rabbit hole to pro-actively inform them about legal drugs that they (and ourselves) may benignly encounter under legitimate, seemingly safe, scenarios. Kratom is one such substance that is proliferating like wildfire, threatening unsuspecting consumers – and children – with its little known addictive effects in the process.
What is Kratom?
Kratom is a plant native to Southeast Asia. It contains the substance mitragynine, which is a powerful psychoactive alkaloid.
Not surprisingly, in this part of the world, kratom is popular as a recreational drug.
Kratom Tea
Prepared as a dried and ground herb, kratom tea is a deep green powder that looks strikingly similar to matcha. It is promoted as helpful for anxiety and pain, making those seeking a lifestyle boost particularly vulnerable.
Fans of kratom say it is safe because it has been used in Asia as natural medicine for centuries. Further, they claim that dangerous side effects only potentially occur when mixed with alcohol or drugs.
Here in the North America, this herb is unregulated with dried and crushed versions commonly taken in pill form or brewed into tea.
Even more worrisome, many places that serve kratom tea spike it with CBD oil, increasing the synergistic dangers for a psychotic episode.
One of the first to address the problem, New York City recently banned edibles and drinks containing CBD in bars and restaurants. As of this writing, however, it has taken no action on kratom. (1, 2)
Popular at tea bars where young people like to hang out, kratom is popular for triggering an opioid-like effect. Depending on the dose, those who consume it may experience stimulant like effects or even mild euphoria. Hence the aggressive marketing to “naturally” treat anxiety and pain.
Kratom is Unregulated
Currently, there are no age restrictions on kratom use. This means a minor can order it on their own, and it is frequently available in places where no alcohol is served giving the false impression of safety.
This substance is already the subject of at least one lawsuit, by the parent of a teenager in my local area.
Kratom is suspected of causing brain damage in a 19 year old who drank it frequently starting at age 15 at several tea cafes near her home.
Then, out of the blue, the young woman began to suffer from “psychotic episodes and hallucinations so severe that she was confined” to a nursing home. Her physician made the connection between kratom and her brain injury. The suit alleges that the tea bars failed to warn about its dangerous side effects, making them liable for damages. (3)
Disability from kratom seems to be the tip of the iceberg.
The Food and Drug Administration has linked kratom to dozens of deaths in the United States over a nine-year period. To date, however, the agency has taken no action on prohibiting or regulating its use, saying only that:
There are no FDA-approved uses for kratom, and the agency has received concerning reports about the safety of kratom. FDA is actively evaluating all available scientific information on this issue and continues to warn consumers not to use any products labeled as containing the botanical substance kratom or its psychoactive compounds, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine. FDA encourages more research to better understand kratom’s safety profile, including the use of kratom combined with other drugs. (4)
Kratom Effects
Fans of kratom claim that its effects are beneficial and can help wean people off deadly opioid abuse. While potentially true (more research is needed though – see below), it doesn’t justify easy kratom availability to minors.
What about people who don’t or have never even used opioids?
According to the FDA, kratom “affects the same opioid brain receptors as morphine, [and] appears to have properties that expose users to the risks of addiction, abuse, and dependence.” (5)
Does this seem like a substance that a 15 year old girl as described above should be able to freely consume at a local tea bar?
Short Term Symptoms
One or more symptoms typically appear within 5-10 minutes of consuming kratom. They usually last between 2-5 hours. The complete list of short term side effects from consuming kratom in tea or capsule form include: (6)
- Skin: Itching, sweating, dry mouth
- Excretory: Constipation, diarrhea, increased urination
- Cardiovascular: Fast or fluttering heartbeat, panic attacks
- Neurological: Feelings of agitation, irritability, or uneasiness, drowsiness, loss of muscle coordination in arms or legs, hallucinations, seizures
- Gastrointestinal: Loss of appetite, nausea, constipation, diarrhea, liver damage
Long Term Dangers
Kratom dependency is documented in the scientific literature in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependency. More than half of users who consumed kratom for six months or longer develop severe dependency problems. The other half show moderate addiction.
Did you get that?
Nearly 100% of people using kratom for 6 months or longer were addicted – either moderately or severely.
Those who consumed 3 or more glasses per day had a higher risk of developing severe addiction. These individuals were also likely to experience uncontrollable kratom cravings and withdrawal symptoms which included: (7)
Physical
- Muscle spasms
- Pain
- Insomnia
- Watery eyes/nose
- Hot flashes
- Fever
- Decreased appetite
- Diarrhea
Psychological
- Restlessness
- Tension
- Anger
- Sadness
- Nervousness
The journal Addiction Biology also warns of the “evidence for an addiction potential with cognitive impairments for mitragynine [kratom], which suggest its classification as a harmful drug”. (8)
The Effects of Kratom – Bottom Line
The current scientific literature on kratom summarized above is certainly ominous.
However, much more research needs to be done on the effects of kratom.
The best information we have at present is what doctors have observed about dependence in a clinical setting from individual patients experiencing addiction and/or withdrawal symptoms.
In the meantime, savvy parents will take the initiative to warn their children to avoid this herb when frequenting cafes and restaurants with their friends.
I certainly love a good natural remedy as much as anyone, but just because something is natural does not make it safe!
Just Say No … to Kratom!
References
(1) New York City bans CBD in bars and restaurants
(2) Legality of Kratom in New York
(3) Lawsuit says Kratom Tea Caused Teen’s Brain Damage
(4, 5) FDA and Kratom
(6) Kratom Side Effects
(7) Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) dependence, withdrawal symptoms and craving in regular users
(8) Abuse potential and adverse cognitive effects of mitragynine
Ellen, if you need it for pain management. GO FOR IT!!!! The thing with Kratom is that IF you take too much it WILL make you sick and you will puke your guts out! You cannot over dose on it like Opiods! Just start a small amount. 3 to 5 capsules. Wait a half hour then see how youre feeling. I was on pain meds for 16 miserable years and Kratom was my miracle!!! With my pain, mood,energy levels and withdrawls from opiods! Big Pharma and Doctors KNOW it works and will eventually cut into their profits thats why they dont want it!
I used kratom to help deal with withdrawals from opiates. I used it for 1-2 months, and I didn’t use it every day. It helped me quit and stay away from opiates which nearly took my life and turned me into a monster. I am very grateful for kratom and all it has done for me, but I do think it should be age restricted. And i do think it can be dangerous if to much is consumed, but that is just like any other OTC or prescription medication. That is why there is age restrictions on them and why it should be on kratom too
I have a disease called Adhesive Arachnoiditis, nicknamed the suicide disease because it is so painful. I also have a mitochondrial disease called Cyclic vomiting Syndrome and opiates trigger my vomiting. I had been using kratom successfully for 4 years. It is the only thing I use for pain. I take 1 tsp in the morning and 1 tsp in the afternoon. It is as addictive as coffee. If i stop taking it, my pain comes back. That’s it, no withdrawal symptoms, nothing. This article is q throwback to weed mania. It is full of lies of absolutely is not true. I am in groups with literally 1000’s of people who kratom has saved their lives.
If I didn’t have kratom, I wouldn’t be able to get out of bed on days where my chronic nerve pain or subsequent anxiety and depression issues are out of control. It’s my body and this habit makes life tolerable to me. We already have cannabis prohibition and look at all the people it’s helping now that it’s slowly coming to an end. We need to keep people safe, of course. We don’t want to get ripped off or worse, sick from a tainted product. However, I just wanted to speak up and say that the responsible use of kratom is a literal life saver for me and potentially for thousands of people dealing with physcisl or mental pain. It makes life worth living for me.
Honestly I feel no one should be able to tell an adult what they can and can’t do with there consciousness plain and simple
I have been a daily consumer of kratom for 4 years. I have never had a psychotic episode. This reminds me of the time the govt said that if colored people smoked marijuana they would rape white women.. Give me a break 5 million people safely consume kratom in America . What I would like to know is did this Dr check for tieneptine or Phenibut usage by this young lady? Those are real side effects from these 2 substances that are widely available in head shops and on the internet !?
I took it for years and didn’t notice one of those symptoms. It was for pain. I live in Florida and if I want some I know where a bunch of trees are. Takes just a few fresh leaves to relieve pain. To me it’s like a cup of coffee.
Curious if you are open to some pushback. Many of these same arguments keep coming up that seem confusing they way they are delivered.
For example, the 19 deaths with kratom. Last I checked all but 1 had other substances in the body too and could not be attributed to kratom. In fact non of the evidence presented even sound like a clinical study and we all know why anecdotes are not evidence really.
Could there be a less sensationalized version of kratom. The 100% addiction rate for 6 months of use wasnt my own experience. I took it for 1.5 years and then was able to stop seemingly with minimal withdrawal.
But again don’t take my anecdote either. Let’s all agree to study it clinically.
I’ve been using kratom now for 6 years without having all the dangerous side-effects your article claims. As an individual, I have Congestive Heart Failure and was implanted with a cardioverter defibrillator in 2008 because my ejection fracture was down to 15. I have been prescribed coreg, diovan, spironolactone, torismide, metalizone, lipitor along with albuterol and Asmanex (for copd). I take all these medications twice-daily, and have been doing so since 2007 when I was first diagnosed with heart failure. In 2010 I was involved in a car accident which damaged my spinal cord. I was prescribed oxycontin and dilauid, along with epidural injections every three-months, prior too that I was prescribed dilauid starting in 2008 which continued up to the accident The prescribed narcotics literally turn my life into a living nightmare and were totally ineffective towards reducing the spinal cord pain, not only that, they also started to make my pain worse. Because of the side-effects, one being breathing difficulties I sought after an alternative. After discovering kratom, I decided it was worth a try. At that time, I would’ve tried anything which held some hope, the hope of being lifted out of the living hell the narcotics entrapped me in. I purchased some kratom from a reputable vendor and started on my journey of escape from my physical dependency on FDA approved narcotics. Within one week, I discontinued using the prescribed narcotics without facing any symptoms of withdrawal. I was concerned with any interactions between kratom and the host of medications I must take daily for my heart and lung disease. But within my thinking (after studying kratom) I came to the conclusion that it could be no worse than the interactions between the FDA approved narcotics. Since things actually started looking brighter, it was determined that kratom was the safer alternative since there was no interaction with my ability to breathe, or my ability to maintain a healthy heart rhythm. Because I have an ICD I must go to the device clinic every four-months so they can interrogate my device. One of the wonderful things about an ICD is the fact that it records every single heartbeat and every ill-fated heart rhythm. In 2008, I was hospitalized after going into ventilator tachycardia. In this particular instance my ICD discharged, thus saving my life. Up until the time I started taking kratom my ICD interrogations indicated that my heart rhythm were all.over the place. For the past six-years since taking kratom I have had no irregular heart rhythms (my interrogation records prove this fact) and my ICD/pacemaker have been sitting there happily without the need to do what they were designed. Kratom has given me back my life along with the energy to function. Heart failure robs a person of their energy, kratom has saved my life.
There are many millions who use kratom responsibly and to who this plant is a god sent blessing. Of course there should be strict age requirements for purchase. To make this plant illegal would be destructive to so many .