Following a White House meeting on drug policy on Monday, May 11, 2026, President Donald Trump told a small group of reporters, “We’re looking very seriously at natural 7‑OH and getting that approved.” In 2025, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy gave a press …
Trump Says His Administration is Looking to Approve “Natural 7-OH” Read More »
A long-awaited kratom clinical study conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. The pilot study (defined as “a preliminary investigation designed to test the feasibility and design of a larger, more comprehensive study”) involved healthy adult participants who were administered an ascending dose of …
Multiple news media and even medical professionals have repeated the claim that 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) is “13 times stronger than morphine” as though it is a fact established through rigorous science. Where does this claim come from and how accurate is it? The claim comes from studies from 2002 (Takayama, et al) and 2004 (Matsumoto, et …
Is 7-OH Really “13 times stronger than morphine”? Read More »
On Februrary 24, officials in Pike County, Illinois voted unanimously to ban the sale of kratom and criminalize citizens in possession of it. “I commend the local community and our state’s attorney for bringing it forward, just trying to get ahead of the situation,” said Pike County Board Chairwoman Reta Hoskin. This is the second …
Pike County is the Latest Illinois Locale to Ban Kratom Read More »
Mohamed Gamiel, owner of Sarah Quick Stop and Liquor Corner Store in Tupelo, MS, has filed an appeal of the town’s recent decision to ban the manufacture, sale, and possession of kratom. The appeal was filed last week in Lee County Circuit Court. Gamiel argues in his appeal that Tupelo’s kratom ban is arbitrary, unsupported …
Tupelo Convenience Store Owner Appeals Kratom Ban Read More »
Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky announced that he is taking action to place 7-hydroxymitragynine on the list of Schedule I substances in Kentucky. The move will classify 7-OH in the same category as heroin, criminalizing 7-OH consumers in the bluegrass state. If it is determined that a substance poses an imminent threat to public safety, …
Governor Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) is urging the Ohio Board of Pharmacy (BOP) to classify kratom as a Schedule I substance. This comes just weeks after the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recommendation that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) schedule 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), an alkaloid that occurs in trace amounts in plain leaf kratom and as a …
Ohio Governor Calls for State Kratom Ban; Cites Recent FDA Recommendation Read More »
The alkaloid 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) is unique in that it occurs mostly as a metabolite of mitragynine (MG), the most abundant alkaloid in kratom. On July 29, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its intention to recommend scheduling of 7-OH on the list of federally controlled substances, but explicitly stated that its not going after …
Could Kratom Consumers Catch DUI if 7-OH is Banned? Read More »
Members of the American Kratom Association (AKA) and the Holistic Alternative Recovery Trust (HART) will debate the controversial alkaloid 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) and the 7-OH-abundant products that have become available to consumers in the past 2 years. Billed as “The 7-OH Fault Line”, the debate will take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center 3150 Paradise …
AKA and HART Face Off Over 7-Hydroxymitragynine This Friday Read More »
In a statement released May 29, the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) warned soldiers about the “dangers of kratom”. Echoing language posted on the DEA or FDA website, the Army CID pointed out that kratom and its alkaloids are not FDA approved, and listed all possible side effects, but did not characterize …