What is kratom, the herbal product with a complicated reputation?

(NEXSTAR) – Roughly 18 months ago, kratom, an herbal product, was banned in six states. One of those states has since rolled back its ban, while more have pushed bans forward.

This comes amid a rise in reported adverse effects linked to kratom, including deaths, as well as efforts to regulate a product commonly associated with the natural substance.

The herbal substance comes from tropical trees in Southeast Asia and can cause “opioid- and stimulant-like effects,” according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). It contains chemical compounds that can affect the body, two of which are well-studied: mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH). 

You can find kratom sold in capsule and powder form. The latter can be mixed into foods and beverages, such as a “euphoric seltzer.” Kratom products are frequently advertised as being able to improve your mood, focus, and energy levels.

The substance can interact with the same brain receptors that chocolate, coffee, and exercise impact, the American Kratom Association notes.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved any uses of kratom. However, NIDA explains that some people have reported using the substance to “manage drug withdrawal symptoms and cravings” as well as pain, fatigue and mental health problems.

More than 1.8 million people over the age of 12 reported using kratom within the previous 12 months in a 2024 survey.

“It really deals with the normal stresses of daily life and the aches and pains related to it,” Mac Haddow, senior fellow on public policy for the American Kratom Association, told Nexstar’s WPRI.

Research into the short- and long-term effects of kratom continues.

NIDA warns that some have reported feeling nauseous, constipated, dizzy or drowsy after using kratom, while health care providers have reported tremors, seizures, high blood pressure and liver problems among patients. Similar reactions have been reported among those who use cannabis, and any........

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