Kratom, the tropical tree native to Southeast Asia, isn’t lawfully marketed in the U.S.— not as a drug product, a dietary supplement, or a food additive in conventional food. However, products prepared from kratom leaves are available in the U.S. through sales on the Internet and at brick-and-mortar stores.
Kratom is often used to self-treat conditions such as pain, coughing, diarrhea, anxiety and depression, opioid use disorder, and opioid withdrawal.
According to the American Kratom Association, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is putting consumers at risk because it refuses to regulate kratom properly.
Mac Haddow, the association’s senior fellow on public policy, says: “Since the FDA treats all kratom products as the same, consumers have to navigate an increasingly complex marketplace alone.”
Hellbound and Down 