{"id":11477,"date":"2016-02-13T14:36:51","date_gmt":"2016-02-13T14:36:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/?p=11477"},"modified":"2017-10-18T12:57:07","modified_gmt":"2017-10-18T12:57:07","slug":"kratom-used-as-alternative-to-heroin-but-can-lead-to-addiction-experts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/2016\/02\/kratom-used-as-alternative-to-heroin-but-can-lead-to-addiction-experts\/","title":{"rendered":"Kratom Used as Alternative to Heroin, But Can Lead to Addiction: Experts"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\"\"<\/a>The drug kratom is being used by some people as an alternative to heroin and other illegal drugs even though it, too, can be addictive, The New York Times reports.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Kratom is increasingly popular and easily available, the article notes. Some people using kratom go back to using heroin, which is stronger and less expensive. Powdered forms of kratom, which come from a leaf found in Southeast Asia, are sold in head shops, gas station convenience stores and online.<\/span><\/p>\n

The drug is categorized as a botanic dietary supplement. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cannot restrict the sale of kratom unless it is proved unsafe, or manufacturers claim it treats a medical condition. The FDA banned the import of kratom into the United States in 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kratom is not controlled under the Federal Controlled Substances Act. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has listed kratom as a \u201cdrug and chemical of concern,\u201d and\u00a0 notes on its website that there is no legitimate medical use for kratom in the United States.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the DEA, at low doses, kratom produces stimulant effects with users reporting increased alertness, physical energy, and talkativeness. At high doses, users experience sedative effects.<\/span><\/p>\n

Indiana, Tennessee, Vermont and Wyoming have banned kratom. The Army has forbidden its use by soldiers, according to the newspaper.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a fascinating drug, but we need to know a lot more about it,\u201d said Dr. Edward W. Boyer, a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, who has studied kratom. \u201cRecreationally or to self-treat opioid dependence, beware \u2014 potentially you\u2019re at just as much risk\u201d as with an opiate, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kratom bars have opened in South Florida, as well as Colorado, New York and North Carolina. The bars sell brewed varieties of kratom, in plastic bottles that look like fruit juice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:\u00a0\u00a0 drugfree.org\u00a0 7th January 2016<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The drug kratom is being used by some people as an alternative to heroin and other illegal drugs even though it, too, can be addictive, The New York Times reports. Kratom is increasingly popular and easily available, the article notes. Some people using kratom go back to using heroin, which is stronger and less expensive. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[91],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-legal-highs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11477"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11477\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}