Banning 7‑OH Alone Won't Protect Families.
Natural Kratom Causes Real Harm.

From Kratom Leaf to New Opioid Compounds: The Patent Evidence

A U.S. patent documents researchers extracting four alkaloids from commercially purchased kratom powder, developing new chemical derivatives, and demonstrating opioid-receptor activity. The research raises a question for lawmakers: What happens when the natural leaf becomes the starting material for the next generation of opioid compounds?

End Gas Station Heroin. But Leave Gas Station Kratom?

Congress proposes targeting potent kratom-derived compounds while leaving botanical kratom outside the bill's prohibitions. But seizures, comas, respiratory depression and deaths were documented long before 2024. We examine the bill's loopholes, the historical evidence and the American Kratom Association's support.

116 Human Subjects. What Did the Kratom Abuse Study Find?

A 2026 placebo-controlled human study found dose-related psychoactive effects and abuse-related adverse events following dried kratom leaf consumption. We examine the findings, concerning effects, study limitations, and the involvement of American Kratom Association consultant Jack Henningfield.

Washington Changed the Thresholds. It Left Kratom Leaf Alone.

The October 9 announcement introduces new concentration and alkaloid-ratio thresholds for 7-OH and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. But the revised approach leaves botanical kratom and its mitragynine supply outside these proposed controls. The finished molecules face scheduling while their upstream source remains available.

Ban One Molecule. What Happens When Chemists Make the Next One?

A U.S. patent shows mitragynine extracted from kratom leaf can serve as the scaffold for dozens of chemical modifications, including compounds with altered opioid-receptor activity. States can name analogs in legislation, but identifying an unknown derivative in a retail product requires actually knowing what to test for.

Kratom vs. 7-OH vs. Pseudoindoxyl: Different Toxicities, Same Family

PubMed case reports, FDA adverse-event data and Poison Center surveillance show different toxicity profiles. Kratom has published reports involving seizures, liver injury, rhabdomyolysis and major cardiac events; concentrated 7-OH is producing serious opioid-like and cardiac toxicity; and the human evidence on mitragynine pseudoindoxyl is only beginning to emerge.

Follow the Molecule Back: Where High-Potency Kratom Products Begin

7-OH and pseudoindoxyl may look nothing like kratom leaf. But product testing, patents, UN drug monitoring and commercial manufacturing evidence trace the chemistry upstream: raw kratom supplies mitragynine, the starting material manufacturers can chemically transform into increasingly potent products.

FDA Has Refused Kratom 1,177 Times. So Why Is It Still Letting It In?

FDA records show 1,177 kratom refusals—yet since 2020, 180 kratom entry lines categorized as Human Food were allowed to proceed or released. Twenty-four were detained first, then released. We compared FDA’s own data with U.S. bills of lading to examine what is getting through.

The Gas Station Pipeline

Kratom itself cannot be sold, sampled, distributed or openly possessed at the 2026 NACS Show. Its manufacturers, however, can exhibit and market to the convenience-store industry. We identified the kratom companies headed to Las Vegas—and examined the pipeline from manufacturer to gas-station shelf.

Arizona Sues Botanic Tonics

Arizona alleges the founder tested Feel Free on himself at “abusive levels”—about six bottles a day until he “felt toxic”—before the product was mass-marketed as wellness, energy and an alcohol alternative. Now the State is putting what the company allegedly knew, how it marketed the product, and how it encouraged repeat purchases before a court.

Welcome to the Work-Free Drug Place

Police officers, firefighters, nurses, truck drivers and equipment operators described kratom use while working in safety-sensitive roles. Meanwhile, court-submitted science discusses seizures, psychosis, sedation, hallucinations and impaired cognition—and standard workplace testing may never look for it.

The Ohio Files: What Botanic Tonics Put on the State Court Record

Under oath and in its own filings: mitragynine as a partial mu-opioid agonist, admitted addiction potential, extract concentration risks, finished-product uncertainty, and 1,600+ retail outlets. Read the record—not the talking points.

The Utah Files: What the Kratom Industry Put on the Federal Court Record

Under oath and in its own filings: MP in natural leaf, acknowledged kratom risks, disputed safety claims, clinical-study limits, and product-quality evidence. Read the record—not the talking points.

States Move to Protect Families as Kratom-Related Harms Rise

Does Pure Leaf Kratom Get You High? A Review of Reddit User Reports

Does Pure Leaf Kratom Get You High? Part II – The FDA-Sponsored Human Trial

Florida Raises 7‑OH Limit 2.5× Despite Declaring "Imminent Hazard"

Pinney's Plan. DEA's Policy. – How an Industry-Linked Strategy Became Federal Policy

Connecticut Consumer Accounts Reveal Severe Whole‑Leaf Kratom Dependence

Following the Kratom Supply Chain: What One Bill of Lading Reveals

Botanic Tonics Investigation: FDA Safety Claim Under Senate Scrutiny

The "24 Million Kratom Users" Mirage

They Banned Kratom. The Disaster Never Came.