Struggles with substance abuse will not end anytime soon, and the landscape is always changing with a current focus on well-known drugs such as opioids and fentanyl. But something called kratom is also very troubling, primarily due to its availability. Kratom is an unregulated, legal herbal supplement available throughout the valley under brand names including Vivazen, Zen, and K Meta shots.

Kratom affects the brain in the manner opiates do, binding to the same receptors in the brain as morphine and other opioids. Its addiction risk has been downplayed giving users a false sense of security, but, although legal, it is prone to being abused. The opioid effects from kratom derive from the tree’s leaf. One compound, mitragynine has mild opioid effects. The other, 7-hydroxymitragynine, is 13 times more potent than morphine milligram for milligram, according to a study published by the National Library of Medicine. The drug has a dual effect as stimulant and sedative, depending on dosage. Most people are unfamiliar with kratom’s opioid-like effects and think since you can buy it at the gas station, it must be safe. Please take a few minutes to read the important linked article featured in the Idaho Mountain Express about a local family’s struggle with kratom and a flyer with facts on kratom and Idaho statistics.

CLICK HERE to read the IME article, “How kratom, a legal ‘herbal opioid,’ tore one local family apart”

CLICK HERE to download the flyer on Kratom Facts and ODP Facts on Kratom Use in Idaho