The Trump administration is recommending that a compound called 7-OH be scheduled as an illicit drug, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary announced Tuesday.

The compound is a by-product of the Kratom plant whose ground leaves are sold as a dietary supplement to boost energy or provide pain relief. FDA officials said 7-OH has a “high risk of addiction” and abuse because of its ability to bind to opioid receptors in the brain.

The compound is found in trace amounts in the kratom plant, and the FDA's move is aimed at products with concentrated levels of 7-OH.

Makary said the agency is urging the Drug Enforcement Agency to classify 7-OH as a Schedule 1 substance, placing it on list of drugs that include heroin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and ecstasy.

“We have a history in public health of being asleep at the wheel,” Makary said. “Public health is supposed to prevent disasters, not just clean them up after they’ve killed thousands and thousands of people.”

The American Kratom........

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