Is Kratom Safe for Health? (2023 Updated)

Is Kratom Safe for Health?

What’s all the rage with kratom these days? Is Kratom safe for health? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has just classified this plant-based medication, which is often used to wean individuals off hard narcotics like heroin and opiates, as a potentially hazardous drug (FDA).

Why? Despite this, there is no evidence that users of kratom may get addicted to the substance themselves. One 2018 study even said that kratom exposure has been related to adverse effects, including agitation, irritation, tachycardia, withdrawal symptoms, and even mortality.

Is Kratom legal?

In the United States, kratom is considered to be lawful. However, there are many nations in the world where it is not legal, including Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, and the European Union. Kratom is often sold as alternative medicine in the United States. It’s available at shops that offer vitamins and complementary medicines. Read more about the legality of kratom in different states of the United States. Don’t forget to our latest published articles:

• Is kratom legal in California?
• Is Kratom legal in Ohio?
• Is Kratom legal in Washington?
• Is Kratom legal in Arizona?

Why and How Do People Use Kratom?

Kratom has been shown to act as a stimulant at low dosages. When used in small quantities, low-dose users often feel more energized, alert, and outgoing. Higher doses of kratom have been shown to have sedative and euphoric effects and dull the senses and emotions that come with them. Alkaloids mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine are the primary active components in kratom. Analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and muscle relaxant actions are possible for these alkaloids. As a result, the best kratom for energy is often used to treat the pain and fatigue associated with fibromyalgia.

The plant’s dark green leaves are often dried, crushed, or ground into a fine powder. Fortified kratom powders are available in green or light brown hues. They also include many additional plant extracts. Additionally, Kratom is available as a powder, a paste, and even as a pill. Kratom is mostly used as a tea in the United States to treat pain and opiate addiction.

5 Possible Health Benefits of Kratom Strains

Kratom has positively impacted the lives of many people struggling with addiction. Kratom’s unique alkaloid composition allows for a wide range of therapeutic benefits. Some possible positive effects include:

•         Pain relief
•         Opiate withdrawal relief
•         Opiate maintenance/transitional substance
•         Mood-lifting
•         Energy Promotion
•         Anxiolytic (anti-anxiety)
•         Depression relief
•         Immune system stimulation
•         Nootropic (cognition enhancing)
•         Anti-leukemic
•         Anti-malarial
•         Anti-inflammatory
•         Lowers blood sugar

Although the outlook by the FDA and DEA is grim, there have been documented benefits for taking the kratom drug in certain forms. Some of the top kratom use include:

• Treats Opiate Dependence

Increasingly popular among heavy drug addicts, kratom is used to treat opiate addiction. The leaf’s chemicals help reduce withdrawal symptoms while simulating some of the effects of opioids. Chewing the leaves has a psychological and persistent impact and a safe and rapid “boost” comparable to taking stronger narcotics. Also, unlike other opioids, kratom does not seem to induce hypoventilation, a respiratory depression that is a major cause of opiate mortality.

Because kratom is unregulated, there is little credible research on the plant, although some suggest it may help individuals overcome opioid withdrawals.

• Energizes

The leaf’s components have been proven to improve productivity via greater concentration and buzz-like excitement, without the heart rate increases associated with too much caffeine or caffeine overdose. The extract may enhance the oxygen in the circulation and soothe nerves for a steadier boost. This unique energy increase is frequently referred to as a kratom high.

• Pain Relief

Many individuals take kratom for pain, particularly chronic symptoms like back pain, headaches, or joint discomfort. Research in Addiction looked at self-medication for opioid withdrawal. For example, a patient who had stopped injecting hydromorphone used kratom to treat opiate withdrawal and chronic pain. The alkaloids in the leaf bind to opioid receptors in the brain, helping to dull and alleviate pain and ease opioid addiction. 

• Mood and Anxiety

The kratom plant’s characteristics make it an effective anxiolytic (an anti-panic or anti-anxiety agent). It may assist individuals with severe mood swings, sadness, and anxiety since it boosts energy via metabolic processes. The leaf extracts help regulate hormone release throughout the body, reducing or eliminating mood swings.

Using kratom for anxiety may be difficult for new users. Because there are so many distinct kratom strains, choosing the incorrect one, such a very active strain, offers minimal benefit. Borneo, Indo, Bali, and certain Red Veins are often utilized as natural anxiety relievers.

• Boosts sexual function

Traditionally, kratom has been used to enhance male fertility and assist in premature ejaculation. The sexual benefits of kratom have not been proven scientifically, but enhanced sperm production in mice has, and there is a developing market for it.

Is Kratom Safe?

So, is it safe? Although the extract has just recently been available in the United States, it has been used for centuries and has been shown to have many health benefits. Many of the beneficial benefits of kratom may be reversed to harmful effects on the body. There have also been reports of “kratom hangovers,” which mimic the symptoms of an alcoholic hangover.

• Digestive and Liver Problems

The usage of kratom has been linked to nausea and vomiting. Seizures, liver difficulties, extreme nausea, and dehydration have all been documented. According to research published in the Journal of Medical Toxicology, a young guy developed jaundice and pruritus (itching) after using kratom for just two weeks.

• Chronic or Prolonged Issues

Large doses of sedative Kratom (10–25 grams of dry leaves) may cause sweating, dizziness, nausea, and dysphoria at first. Still, these are quickly replaced by serenity, euphoria, and a dreamy state lasting up to six hours. Weight loss, fatigue, constipation, and darkening of the cheeks are known side effects of kratom.

• Psychological Effects

While some physical symptoms may subside after a week, psychological consequences are common and may be more severe. A list of these symptoms is provided below.

•         Delusions and hallucinations
•         A lack of sexual drive  
•         Anxiety
•         Mood swings
•         Psychotic episodes such as weeping and lethargy

• Withdrawal Symptoms in Newborns

The opioid-like properties of kratom have been shown to induce severe withdrawal symptoms in neonates. This has happened twice in the US, raising worries regarding kratom usage during pregnancy. Opioid medications, including morphine, heroin, and oxycodone, are increasingly being sought by pregnant women (OxyContin).

Conclusion

The plant includes approximately 40 different compounds as well as more than 25 different alkaloids. It has been found that the ubiquitous alkaloid compound mitragynine is more efficient in alleviating withdrawal symptoms than methadone. Alkaloids have been employed in the treatment of different diseases for thousands of years, and they are also utilized in the production of psychoactive drugs. Because herbal supplements aren’t regulated like prescription medicines, a larger, concentrated dosage may have more severe adverse effects sooner.