As the US weathers its fourth wave, opioid epidemic crisismore and more people are turning to non-opioids to combat pain, including a natural remedy known as kratom.
However, coroners and medical examiners found that 1.5% to 1.7% of overdose deaths from January 2020 to December 2022 were caused by kratom.
This is according to state Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (SUDORS) data that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shared with Fox News Digital.
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Here we take a closer look at this important issue.
What is Kratom?
“Kratom is derived from the leaves of Mitragyna speciosa, a Southeast Asian tree found in Malaysia and Thailand,” says Lori Curran, MD. Internal medicine and preventive medicine He spoke to Fox News Digital from Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, California.
Medical examiners and medical examiners found that kratom, which is often taken in capsule form, was responsible for 1.5% to 1.7% of overdose deaths from January 2020 to December 2022. (St. Petersburg)
Tree leaves contain more than 40 different active compounds. The most important are mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, and speciophorin.
It is believed that this plant has a dual nature.
It has a stimulant effect at low doses, Opioid-like analgesic effect It can be dangerous in large doses, said Dr. Richard Clark, medical director of the California Poison Control System’s San Diego Division.
“It is active Opioid receptors in the brain (Similar to opioid analgesics) So it has been used as a replacement for opioid analgesics or as a tool to ameliorate opioid withdrawal symptoms,” Clark told FOX News Digital.
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Americans most commonly use kratom to help self-medicate chronic pain and combat opioid withdrawal symptoms, he said.
Although the drug is banned in six states: Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin, people can still purchase products prepared from kratom leaves online and in stores across the United States.
Kratom is derived from the leaves of Mitragyna speciosa, a Southeast Asian tree found in Malaysia and Thailand. (St. Petersburg)
“Currently, there are no specific laws in the United States prohibiting the possession of kratom,” Clark noted.
According to the 2022 National Survey on Drug Abuse, nearly 2 million Americans ages 12 and older have used kratom in the past year.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website, “There are no medications containing kratom or its two major chemical components legally on the market in the United States.”
“The FDA has not approved any prescription or over-the-counter drug product containing kratom or its two main chemical components, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH-mitragynine).”
Potential risks of kratom
Vendors may advertise kratom as: Safe and “all natural” Experts warn that the composition can vary widely and may not accurately reflect the product’s label.
Kratom rarely causes significant toxic effects, but if a person takes large amounts of kratom or combines it with other drugs, they can experience hallucinatory reactions, convulsions, coma, and in rare cases, death. warned Mr. Clark.
“Using large amounts of kratom can also cause an individual to develop dependence and withdrawal symptoms,” he said.
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Other side effects may include nausea, dizziness, confusion and tremors, Curran said.
“Despite the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s warnings about the risks of kratom use, the agency continues to receive concerning reports of adverse events associated with kratom use by the general public,” an FDA spokesperson said. told FOX News Digital.
“The FDA also warns consumers against using kratom due to the risk of serious adverse events, including liver toxicity, seizures, and substance use disorders (SUD).”
Kratom’s role in overdose deaths
According to the SUDORS report, kratom was “detected” in 2,966 of the 144,189 overdose deaths from 2020 to 2022. This means that a certain amount of the substance was detected in a post-mortem toxicology test, regardless of whether it was the cause of death. .
(SUDORS report includes data for 30 states and Washington, DC)
Kratom has been “involved” in 2,343 deaths, meaning that coroners and medical examiners have listed kratom as the cause of death. (St. Petersburg)
Kratom has been “involved” in 2,343 deaths, meaning that coroners and medical examiners have cited kratom as the cause of death.
When kratom is found during a post-mortem examination in case of overdose, death most often occurs due to: multiple drugs — It’s not just kratom, experts say.
“Most fatal overdoses occur in people who ingest other substances in addition to kratom.”
“Most fatal overdoses occur in people who ingest other substances in addition to kratom,” Curran told FOX News Digital.
Many were also taking fentanyl, alcohol, or therapeutic drugs. anxiety or depression.
Advocates speak out against the claim
The Virginia-based American Kratom Association supports Americans’ right to consume kratom safely and responsibly.
Kratom supporters point out that the study detected the substance in a small number of over 300,000 fatal overdoses.
“Research shows that virtually all deaths associated with kratom consumption involve polydrug use, and many people suffering from substance use disorders find kratom helps them wean themselves off more dangerous drugs.” That’s not surprising, given what they’re doing,” said Mack Haddow, a senior fellow in public policy. told Fox News Digital at the American Kratom Association.
Experts say that when kratom is detected in a post-mortem examination of an overdose case, the death almost always occurs as a result of multiple medications, not just kratom. (St. Petersburg)
“As with most consumer products already on the market, it is possible for consumers to harm themselves by abusing kratom products, but both such occurrences are rare and are not liable. “It has nothing to do with the safety profile of kratom when consumed,” he added.
The FDA also states that deaths rarely occur from kratom use alone, and these deaths usually occur in combination with other drug use, and as stated on its website, “Kratom use in deaths… The contribution is unknown.”
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Cornell N. Stanciu, M.D., director of addiction services at New Hampshire Hospital and assistant professor of psychiatry at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine, told FOX News Digital that, to her knowledge, the only substance-related deaths involved kratom. He said no. .
The doctor is currently working on a paper investigating overdoses attributed to kratom by medical examiners.
One of the FDA’s top priorities as part of the Overdose Prevention Framework is to protect the public from the risks of unapproved drug substances, including kratom, the agency told FOX News Digital. (Reuters/Andrew Kelly/File Photo)
“What I’m seeing so far is that there’s a lot of variation in reporting and testing,” Stanciu said.
comprehensive test She noted that coroners lack this knowledge because most laboratories do not test for kratom’s active metabolites after a person dies.
“Secondly, and even more concerning, I see that even if more toxic substances were discovered, some people would still call it a kratom-only death,” she said. warned.
Call for inspection regulations
Haddow, of the American Kratom Association, argues that “misinformation is rampant” related to kratom’s risks and calls for standardized toxicity testing protocols to more accurately determine the substance’s role in overdose. insisted.
He noted that on February 8, the US District Court of Southern California asked the FDA to provide supporting evidence that kratom is dangerous.
Advocates and experts are calling for more regulation and standardization of kratom testing. (Don Emmert/AFP via Getty Images)
“The FDA refused to appear at the hearing, and the U.S. attorney explained to the court that the FDA has not determined whether kratom is dangerous,” he told Fox News Digital.
The FDA responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment and said, “We do not comment on potential, pending, or ongoing litigation.”
The FDA recently conducted a human dosing study that found that no serious adverse events occurred when participants ingested kratom, even at high doses, Haddow claimed. .
“The FDA has warned consumers not to use kratom due to the risk of serious adverse events, including liver toxicity, seizures, and substance use disorders.”
The study results, presented by the FDA at a scientific meeting in February 2024, indicate that “kratom appears to be well-tolerated at all dose levels,” Haddow added.
“FDA’s current pilot study on dose determination was conducted in a small number of samples and is still blinded,” an FDA spokesperson said, cautioning that the data is preliminary and untested.
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“We must wait until the final analysis to draw any definitive conclusions or interpretations of the results,” the FDA spokesperson added.
“Ultimately, we hope that the data from this pilot will be informative and support future research on the plant kratom.”
Kratom supporters point out that the study detected the substance in a small number of over 300,000 fatal overdoses. (St. Petersburg)
One of the FDA’s top priorities as part of the Overdose Prevention Framework is to protect the public from the risks of unapproved drug substances, including kratom, the agency told FOX News Digital.
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An FDA spokesperson said, “We continue to work with our federal partners to actively engage in meaningful research that advances science-based regulatory decision-making.”
“As new scientific and validated knowledge based on rigorously designed research emerges, the agency will provide the public with up-to-date information.”
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