- Kratom, sometimes referred to as “gas station heroin,” is an herb with opioid- and stimulant-like effects.
- It can be fatal in very high doses but is not subject to much federal regulation.
- So states and cities have been banning kratom sales or enacting rules and restrictions.
Is it addictive? Like, physically addictive or “that was nice, I’d like to do it again” addictive? I’ve known people who used it daily for months and quit with no reported problems, side effects, withdrawals, etc. Of course, my sample size is 3 so this is anecdotal.
As I’m sure you know, unbiased information about these things is hard to come by, but for what it’s worth, here are some sources which do claim it has serious dependency issues.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32682371/
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/prescription-drug-abuse/in-depth/kratom-opioid-withdrawal/art-20402170
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376871624002503
It can be very physically addictive.