Kratom: Miracle Plant or Dangerous Opioid?

The FDA wants to ban it, but millions of people feel otherwise

In 2017, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency — and for good reason. Statistics show that an estimated 130 people die from an opioid overdose daily¹.

As a result, certain states have implemented laws that restrict the number of opioids prescribed to patients as well what kind of patients can obtain these drugs. States like California, Texas, and Washington require doctors to fill out substance abuse disorder assessments before prescribing opioids. These questionnaires are intended to evaluate the risk of a patient abusing their medication by asking questions about past alcohol and illegal drug use. Patients deemed “high-risk” would stand a much lower chance of getting prescription opioids.

The DEA has also been at the forefront of the opioid crisis — pushing doctors to prescribe fewer of these drugs.

In the war against opioids, chronic pain patients have become unintended victims. The medication they once relied on to manage their pain has now become much more difficult to obtain. In fact, many chronic pain patients can’t even discuss the possibility of opioid pain control with their doctors for fear of being labeled a “drug…