A local woman who has worked at convenience stores shared some horror stories with me. Not Freddy and Jason-like horror movies, but real-life situations that could still lead people to an early grave. She wanted to talk about Kratom, which is sold in a store where she worked.
If you read health news or visit vitamin stores, you may have heard about Kratom. It’s a supplement sold as an energy booster, a mood lifter, pain reliever and remedy for withdrawal symptoms of quitting opioids, according to the Mayo Clinic. I personally know people who have used Kratom, with some saying it has been helpful to them after medications failed or became unaffordable.
However, the truth about Kratom is there are numerous safety problems linked to its regular use.
Kratom is an herbal extract that comes from the leaves of an evergreen tree called Mitragyna speciosa. The tree grows in southeast Asia. Kratom users can chew the tree’s leaves, swallow or brew dry Kratom, or add the extract to a liquid.
People who use Kratom report that at low doses it acts as a stimulant, while at higher doses it’s a sedative. It may be easier to get than prescription medicines, but it carries its own risk of addiction.
The Mayo Clinic reported that people who use Kratom to relax or to be more social most likely think it’s natural and safe because it comes from a plant. But the amount of the active part in Kratom leaves can vary greatly, so it’s hard to know the effects of any given dose.
“After nearly a year of physically viewing the effects of Kratom usage and the toll it takes on its users, both young and old,” the convenience store clerk said, “I am shocked this is so easily available.”
She has watched a couple come into her store daily and buy entire boxes of Kratom – not just packets – in both the morning and at night. One young woman told her she takes it to cope and wants to stop, but can’t. An elderly woman seen putting Kratom in her coffee struggled to stand up and slurred her words.
The convenience store clerk told me many Kratom users “walk around like zombies, twitch, constantly toss their heads, walk slightly hunched over and with little balance, can’t seem to focus, don’t realize they have a blank stare and always seem spaced out. I hear them say, ‘The gas station is my dealer.’
“It’s time North Carolina steps up and takes the steps to ban this legal opioid and protect the lives of its citizens.”
She’s absolutely right. Over the years, too many unsafe products – like synthetic marijuana – have been allowed to be sold in stores and online with little oversight from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. While most cases also involve other substances, Kratom was listed as the sole substance causing death to 56 people in 2022, 68 in 2021 and 58 in 2020, according to a Centers for Disease Control & Prevention analysis that did not include several large states.
In addition, the FDA has warned people not to use Kratom because of the possible harm it can cause, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration calls Kratom a drug of concern. So why is it still out there, cheap to buy and easily available without a prescription?
Kratom also comes in colorful packaging that might be good marketing, but is also attractive to children. That’s one of the reasons why 16 countries and six states have either made Kratom a controlled substance or banned it altogether.
North Carolina should become one of them. Sometimes even good people need help being saved from themselves.
David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout. Call him at 828-837-5122 or email dbrown@cherokeescout.com.