Last week, our IAA Blog shared an important story about how Florida officials are in the process of expanding emergency bans that target new chemical compounds being made to try to bypass stricter restrictions being put on high-potency kratom and 7-OH related chemical extracts. Kratom 7-OH is easy to buy at gas stations, smoke shops, and convenience stores, often sold right next to drinks and snacks. In the first half of 2025, more than one-third of reported poison control cases involving 7-OH have led to serious health issues such as seizures and passing out.
This timely information bears repeating because this is how many producers of these Gas Station Morphine Drugs work. When stricter regulations are put in place, they go back to the lab to produce and market copycat formulas to get around the bans. Of course, they attempt to put these drugs back on the store shelves to get around the system and continue marketing these dangerous substances to our vulnerable youth despite their high potential for abuse, addiction, and death.
Recently, our prevention partners at the Partnership to End Addiction shared an article called The Rise of Kratom: A Dangerous and Familiar Pattern about the growing use of kratom and how it mimics the spread of past public health problems and we'd like to bring this to your attention. We've seen what can happen when addictive products become popular before there are enough rules, education, or treatment options in place. The opioid crisis caused devastating harm. Hemp-derived THC products are also spreading rapidly. Many warning signs were ignored until youth began experiencing serious health effects. When we have information, it is important to share it to keep our families and communities safe.
Facts About Kratom 7-OH - Kratom is a plant from Southeast Asia. The regular Kratom leaf, used in teas or ground up, is not the harmful issue because it only contains trace amounts. What is harmful is the synthetic, concentrated by-product - called Kratom 7-OH, 7-Hydro, or legal morphine. In fact, the FDA recently reported that 7-OH can be 13 times more powerful than morphine.
While some people may use the regular kratom plant leaves for energy or pain relief, most kratom 7-OH products are made in a lab. Producers take the small amount of 7-OH from the plant and create more of it. This concentrated 7-OH is then added to products like drinks, gummies, and powders to make them much stronger as well. Products are packaged in eye-catching colors and designs with kid-friendly flavors like pineapple, strawberry, and lemon.
Even more concerning is that those who have become addicted to 7-OH report that sellers may encourage them to try it saying it is more powerful than the kratom they were using, but without explaining the risks of use. Free samples are often offered as well.
The issue is that any type of concentrated, synthetic opioid product like this may have various potency and additives. Experts want people to know to avoid 7-OH, 7-Hydroxy, and any gummy, candy, or drink with 7-OH in it.
To read the informative article The Rise of Kratom: A Dangerous and Familiar Pattern, click:
https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/rise-kratom-dangerous-and-familiar-pattern?
