KIYC: Feds look to ban 'gas station heroin'
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is seeking to ban a powerful, synthetic version of Kratom, which Kane In Your Corner investigated in 2024.
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The Drug Enforcement Administration is taking steps to ban a highly potent, synthetic version of Kratom, an herbal supplement that Kane In Your Corner first investigated in 2024.
Opponents have given the supplement, which is often sold at convenience stores, the nickname “gas station heroin.”
The DEA’s proposed ban would not cover all Kratom products. It would be limited to synthetic versions of the supplement, including 7-Hydroxy-Mitragynine or 7-OH, which doctors say can be orders of magnitude more potent than natural Kratom leaf. Natural Kratom leaf extract would remain legal in New York and New Jersey, although it is illegal in Connecticut.
Kane In Your Corner first reported on Kratom in connection with the death of CJ Holowach, who died from a heart attack after consuming Kratom. CJ had been in pain due to various injuries but had opted for Kratom over prescription painkillers because he was a recovering addict.
“CJ’s autopsy said he died of “mixed drug intoxication including Mitragynine,” but noted he was also taking prescription drugs like Adderall. It’s unclear if the products CJ consumed contained natural Kratom, synthetic versions or both.
CJ’s mother, Trish Bossone, is convinced Kratom is to blame for her son’s death.
Dr. Deena Adimoolam applauds the DEA’s action.
“This specific analog is 13 times stronger than morphine, which means that it is highly addictive,” she says.
The American Kratom Association also says the government is doing the right thing in cracking down on synthetic Kratom products like 7-OH but insists that Kratom itself should be treated differently.
“The science has now demonstrated conclusively that natural Kratom leaf is safe,” says Mac Haddow, senior fellow on Public Policy for the AKA. “It's the chemically manipulated 7-OH opioids that needed to be banned."
Dr. Adimoolam says more testing is needed before she would be willing to declare natural Kratom extract safe.
“I think there's a lot more studies that need to be done on this topic because I don't think that our marketplace for Kratom is really validated in understanding what is being sold,” she says.
The DEA’s public comment period on the proposed ban is winding down, which means the restrictions on synthetic Kratom could take effect as early as this week.
