The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning that the supplement known as “kratom” is an opioid and has been linked with 44 deaths, The Washington Post reports.
Kratom, an unregulated botanical substance, is used by some people to relieve pain, anxiety and depression, as well as symptoms of opioid withdrawal.
The FDA recently conducted a scientific analysis that provided even stronger evidence of kratom’s opioid properties, the agency said in a statement. “We have been especially concerned about the use of kratom to treat opioid withdrawal symptoms, as there is no reliable evidence to support the use of kratom as a treatment for opioid use disorder and significant safety issues exist,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb. The analysis has “contributed to the FDA’s concerns about kratom’s potential for abuse, addiction, and serious health consequences; including death.”
Synthetic Marijuana, also known as "K-2" or "Spice" is a mixture of common herbs sprayed with synthetic chemicals that mirror the high of Marijuana. The synthetic product is sold as incense in head shops, tobacco stores and convenient stores. So far, twelve states have banned the sale of Synthetic Marijuana - (Kansas, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oregon, Illinois, Michigan, and Kentucky). The American Association of Poison Control Centers reported that within the past year there have been over 500 cases of negative reactions to the still legal yet dangerous drug. On the national level the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently designated certain chemicals that are present within Synthetic Marijuana to the same category that heroin and LSD are part of and further emphasizes the need to be able to test blood and urine for Synthetic Marijuana use. On the local level- The Herald Online reported that Fort Mill,...