The Fight to Keep Kratom Legal
By James Donahue
While the battle between citizens and the government over the legalization of marijuana is making headlines, another lesser publicized fight over the natural plant-produced effects of kratom is also raging.
Kratom is made from the leaves of an Asian grown tree known as Mitragyna speciose, a relative of the coffee plant. Natives have been chewing the leaves for energy and pain relief for centuries. It has recently been found to be an effective and safe replacement for opium and opium products like the pain reliever hydrocodone.
The problem is that the Drug Enforcement Administration wants to list kratom as a schedule one controlled substance and ban its sale in the United States.
A DEA announcement to this effect has drawn fierce opposition from citizens who claim the many medical benefits of kratom. Advocates of kratom claim that they find it useful as not only a treatment for chronic pain but for other symptoms like anxiety, depression and opioid addition. They claim that kratom is not addictive and while it gives them a boost as a minor stimulant, they experience no side effects like those brought on by many prescription drugs.
Mass reaction among kratom users brought on by the DEA proposal to ban its use as brought a temporary stall in scheduling the plant as a controlled substance. One news report noted that 51 U.S. Representatives signed a letter to the DEA saying that the move “threatens the transparency of the scheduling process and its responsiveness to the input of both citizens and the scientific community.
Nine senators called the “use of this emergency authority for a natural substance is unprecedented.”
As of May, 2018, the DEA’s acting administrator Chuck Rosenberg wrote that the agency is considering the many public comments before taking further action. The agency has opened up a period of public comment until December 1, 2018. It is also asking the Federal Drug Administration to conduct a “scientific and medical evaluation” of the active chemical compounds in kratom.
After the December date the DEA could permanently declare kratom a controlled substance, it could temporarily schedule kratom, or leave the plant unregulated.
Critics note that placing kratom in schedule 1 would cripple future research on the potential benefits of the substance.
In the meantime, as happened with marijuana, voters and lawmakers in various states have asked for a study to determine if the substance can be legal to sell and use for medical reasons.
Katom is presently legal in Alaska, Arizona, California (except San Diego), Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida (except Sarasota County), Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois (for adults), Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire (for 18+), New Jersey, New Mexico, New York (for 21+), North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio , Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah , Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming.
By James Donahue
While the battle between citizens and the government over the legalization of marijuana is making headlines, another lesser publicized fight over the natural plant-produced effects of kratom is also raging.
Kratom is made from the leaves of an Asian grown tree known as Mitragyna speciose, a relative of the coffee plant. Natives have been chewing the leaves for energy and pain relief for centuries. It has recently been found to be an effective and safe replacement for opium and opium products like the pain reliever hydrocodone.
The problem is that the Drug Enforcement Administration wants to list kratom as a schedule one controlled substance and ban its sale in the United States.
A DEA announcement to this effect has drawn fierce opposition from citizens who claim the many medical benefits of kratom. Advocates of kratom claim that they find it useful as not only a treatment for chronic pain but for other symptoms like anxiety, depression and opioid addition. They claim that kratom is not addictive and while it gives them a boost as a minor stimulant, they experience no side effects like those brought on by many prescription drugs.
Mass reaction among kratom users brought on by the DEA proposal to ban its use as brought a temporary stall in scheduling the plant as a controlled substance. One news report noted that 51 U.S. Representatives signed a letter to the DEA saying that the move “threatens the transparency of the scheduling process and its responsiveness to the input of both citizens and the scientific community.
Nine senators called the “use of this emergency authority for a natural substance is unprecedented.”
As of May, 2018, the DEA’s acting administrator Chuck Rosenberg wrote that the agency is considering the many public comments before taking further action. The agency has opened up a period of public comment until December 1, 2018. It is also asking the Federal Drug Administration to conduct a “scientific and medical evaluation” of the active chemical compounds in kratom.
After the December date the DEA could permanently declare kratom a controlled substance, it could temporarily schedule kratom, or leave the plant unregulated.
Critics note that placing kratom in schedule 1 would cripple future research on the potential benefits of the substance.
In the meantime, as happened with marijuana, voters and lawmakers in various states have asked for a study to determine if the substance can be legal to sell and use for medical reasons.
Katom is presently legal in Alaska, Arizona, California (except San Diego), Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida (except Sarasota County), Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois (for adults), Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire (for 18+), New Jersey, New Mexico, New York (for 21+), North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio , Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah , Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming.