Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

You're first claim that kratom cannot treat addiction because itself is addictive is naive at best. You do not know heroin addiction and you do not know kratom addiction. The two couldn't be more different. Kratom can be a beacon of light in a heroin junkie's dark, destructive addiction. And to say kratom is addictive is like saying chocolate is psychoactive, kratom is certainly no more habit forming than coffee.

Kratom is not an opiate, or an opiode for that matter. Yes, it is an opiate substitute, but for good reasons.

Your 'Claim 2' that there is no evidence of increased energy in users is equally ignorant. This is a drug that has a relatively long history of human use in Thailand and South-Asia, typically among the working class. No study is needed to prove that it helps workers complete long days of physical labor.

I just wanted to clear those things up.

Dan Mantyla Wichita Sophomore

• Upvote 0
• Posted by djm2006 on January 31, 2008 at 10:46 a.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

The attention you are bringing to Kratom will make it illegal that much quicker in the United States. Kratom is one of the most benign of substances with addictive properties. Even if it is addictive, what are the health effects? Does it even begin to rival that of legal drugs, such as Nicotine or Alcohol?

Having read as much information about substances as possible over the years, I have concluded Alcohol is roughly the 3rd most dangerous drug in existence, in terms of mind altering drugs.

It is even debatable as to whether or not Alcohol is the MOST dangerous drug known to man. Substances like Heroin/Meth are bad news, they cause much destruction. If you take the time to read their long term health effects, they mostly pale in comparison to Alcohol; yet we stigmatize these drugs and allow one of the most harmful to remain readily available/legal.

It's funny how Americans are independent minded until it is convenient to be otherwise. For instance, many people will point to kratom being illegal in several other countries and justify making it illegal here on that precedent.

If any substance becomes popular here, it becomes illegal. Most Americans don't even seem to realize Alcohol/tobacco are in fact drugs, just as the 100s of illegal ones here. The most important/sad thing is most Americans don't know the majority of the illegal drugs are less harmful than the most popular legal ones here.

I'd prefer we don't draw attention to Kratom. There are no deaths anywhere in the world blamed on Kratom, no overdoses/violence, nothing. It's just addictive. Big deal. People seem to be able to continue to function for the most part (though not at 100%) with Kratom addiction, unlike most addictions. Can a person that is addicted to Alcohol function? No, the properties of the drug prevent that. Kratom is probably the least of the evils, less so than Marijuana. Think about it.

As long as it's legal, people have a better chance of being able to avoid making an addiction worse. When we make these things illegal, people don't care they have to pay more; so they wind up committing more serious crimes to pay for the drug. Also, at least you know what you're going to get (for the most part) when it's legal. I know herbs aren't regulated; but, you're a lot less likely to get some herb laced with whatever if you buy it from a head shop rather than the corner drug dealer.

Do not forget people, we are giving our freedom away allowing the government to tell us which drugs are acceptable and which ones are not. Do not forget, especially in these days, we waste an incredible amount of money trying to fight this un-winnable war that only winds up creating more violence, crime; and a further deterioration of our way of life.

Keep Kratom legal, at least research before you condemn; and if you condemn, please consider as to whether or not you're being a hypocrite if you think Alcohol should be legal instead of Kratom (or whatever else).

• Upvote 0
• Posted by ajm48786 on February 5, 2008 at 1:28 a.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

Hello, this is Sai, the author of the above letter. First of all, I want to thank you for posting comments. I'm happy to discuss the issue thoroughly. I would like to respond to the comments above.

1. Addiction

I researched for quite a long time, and could find no evidence for kratom alleviating any symptoms of heroin addiction. If good evidence were presented to me, I would be happy to change my mind. But until then, there are no clear benefits for anyone to drink Kratom.

1. Opiate

There are plenty of articles on PubMed that show the opiate effects of kratom. Here is a link to one: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T99-4HG6G29-5&_user=1555633&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000053088&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=1555633&md5=f7560b616a53cff9f505c73f556d3816

1. Energy

There is only one article (Pichainarong N, J Med Assoc Thai, 2004) that I found that addresses this issue, and it works as an excellent example for what a scientific study should NOT be. First of all, the subjects were not randomly assigned and there was no placebo group. The study took surveys of construction workers who drank kratom energy drinks with those who did not. The study "found" that the workers who drank kratom took longer hours. From this, the authors concluded that this supported the notion that kratom boosts energy. However, since there is no control group, there is no way of telling if the workers who drank Kratom just thought that since they were supposedly going to have more energy, they would take on more hours. Also, there is no way of validation any kind of causation from this study. How do we know that the workers didn't just take on the longer hours, and later decide to drink Kratom for its supposed benefits? We can't, because this study is worthless. Correlation does not equal causation.

Once again, if there ever is a good study performed showing energetic effects of Kratom tea, I will be happy to change my mind. But until then, anecdotal evidence of "energy" is not good enough.

(continued on next comment)

• Upvote 0
• Posted by sai on April 9, 2008 at 4:29 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

1. Illegality

The second comment makes a good point: just because sometime is illegal somewhere doesn't mean it should be illegal everywhere. I also agree that Kratom is definitely not the biggest drug problem in the world. My intention of the letter was to simply inform on the true health effects of kratom based on our current scientific knowledge.

I assert that since Kratom has no clear benefit, there is no reason to drink it. I also do not drink alcohol or do any illegal drugs for the same reason. But the illegality argument is a politically and philosophically tricky one to contest. I won't pretend to know everything, and I certainly am of the opinion that SOME drugs should be illegal. But drug politics are complicated, and I did not intend for my letter to be a catalyst for this topic. I will stick to the scientific arguments and leave the debate on drug policy for someone more knowledgeable than me.

-Sai

• Upvote 0
• Posted by sai on April 9, 2008 at 4:30 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

Kratom IS ADDICTIVE.

I like most of you believed that it was just a "supplement" to aid in withdrawls - but now 4 months later I am STILL taking the Kratom. I wake up every morning with my Skin crawling, hands and feet freezing, and no Energy until I drink my first mix!

I knew that it had opiate properties, and I knew that it shouldn't be used daily, but being the "addict" that I was - I just wanted to feel better while withdrawing. I was so proud to be off of the pain pills that I truly thought the Kratom was just "helping". Well, I just traded one habit for another - and there isn't much support out there for Kratom users!

Just to add, I have my Masters in Nursing - so I'm not an idiot lol, it is just a fine line to try to cross for someone suffering from addiction.

In my opinion the Kratom spasms are worse than the Narcs! Kratom seems to metabolize quicker than Narcs as well. I went from taking it 2xs daily - to 5, in just months. I have really been considering switching back to the pills. This stuff destroys your stomach, causes constipation, and is horrifing to drink!

I guess to be fair - if someone used kratom occasionaly there is a very low risk of abuse, but anyone with addiction is just going to add another item to their list by using it - it's not worth it.

• Upvote 0
• Posted by misty1234 on April 9, 2008 at 11:35 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

Please, someone explain to me why Kratom is considered an opiate. Is that assumed because it effects the mu-opoid recepter in the brain? I read the tree's botanical makeup is related closer to yohimbe then the opium poppy. If it is a totally different plant species how can it be an opiate? And, yes, I agree alcohol is scientifically proven to be much more dangerous than Kratom.

• Upvote 0
• Posted by TonyM on April 20, 2008 at 4:42 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

Hello, Sai again.

Misty- Thank you for your comment. You brought up a good point: that supplements really are just drugs, and we all should be careful with our use of them. I'm very sorry for your addiction, and I do hope things turn around for you. The intention of my letter at the start was just to refute the UDK's original assertion that students should start drinking Kratom for fun, and your story serves as a good cautionary tale.

Tony- The link in my previous comments above goes to an scientific research paper that describes the mechanism by which Kratom works. It's a bit heavy in jargon, but it probably has the answers you want. Additionally, I think the term "opiate" was probably used colloquially, and the term "opiod" would be more appropriate.

-Sai

• Upvote 0
• Posted by sai on April 23, 2008 at 8:29 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

There seems to be some confusion here about Kratom and opiates. Look here: http://medistatworld.com/index.php?topic=33.new#new

This is scientific information that shows what is related to what. Very easy to see.

• Upvote 0
• Posted by d7 on June 7, 2008 at 7:47 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

A response to D7:

The structures shown of the molecules referenced in your link do provide some insight into the potential molecular mechanisms of Kratom's drug effect. It is clear that the active chemical shown is probably not an opiate.

However, from my research on research papers concerning the subject, Kratom tea has shown an "opiod" effect, and not one of a stimulant.

Additionally, this does not mean that I will discount any evidence showing that Kratom CAN act as a stimulant. The chemical comparison shown in d7's link will allow for that hypothesis. But as for biological activity in organisms, I must refer back to the study I have previously cited.

I also think it is important to note that the main focus of my letter was to demonstrate that it is NOT a safe idea to encourage rampant use of this sort of drug without proper understanding of the biological consequences.

-Sai

• Upvote 0
• Posted by sai on June 19, 2008 at 4:47 p.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal

Letter to the editor: January 31, 2008

Personally speaking, Kratom helped me with addiction and now I dont use ANYTHING. I used kratom to help me kick the habit and then I stopped using Kratom - very easily.

Everything you need to know about Kratom can be found in this site: www.kratom-world.com>

Peace.

• Upvote 0
• Posted by KratomKing on July 14, 2008 at 12:39 a.m.
• permalink
• suggest removal