Pubdate: Sat, 07 Mar 2015
Source: Tampa Bay Times (FL)
Copyright: 2015 St. Petersburg Times
Contact: http://www.sptimes.com/letters/
Website: http://www.tampabay.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/419
Note: Named the St. Petersburg Times from 1884-2011.
Author: Laura C. Morel

AUTHORITIES TARGET PAIN-RELIEVING HERB - NO, NOT MEDICAL MARIJUANA

After the recent crackdown on prescription and synthetic drugs across 
the state, authorities are now focusing on controlling an herb 
currently legal in Florida and believed to elicit the same effects as 
some narcotics.

Made from the leaves of trees that grow in southeast Asia, kratom is 
on the radar of many agencies: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration 
began detaining imported kratom last year, and the Florida Department 
of Agriculture and Consumer Services ordered grocery and convenience 
stores to stop selling the products. The U.S. Drug Enforcement 
Administration also added it to its list of drugs of concern.

In Florida, Sarasota is the only county that has outlawed the herb.

The rest of the state might be next: State Rep. Kristin Jacobs of 
Coconut Creek filed a bill in January that would make the supplement 
a controlled substance.

"This is Florida's next crisis," Jacobs said. "We must at some point 
figure out how to become proactive rather than reactive to these 
kinds of efforts."

But many kratom users credit the herb for curbing their addictions to 
pain medication.

"I am concerned," said Tammy Hartman of North Fort Myers. "I don't 
want to go back to the situation and the mental place that I was at."

In Tampa Bay, kratom is being sold in smoke shops, including in 
Dunedin, Safety Harbor and St. Pete Beach, said Pinellas sheriff's 
Capt. Mark Baughman, who oversees the narcotics division.

"I'm hoping something will be done," Baughman said. "I think that 
because it's still relatively new on the market that we haven't seen 
all the side effects."

Kratom, also available online, comes in pills, crushed leaves and 
powder that can be added to drinks. One bottle of capsules containing 
two doses costs about $20.

Kratom has been used in southeast Asia for decades, according to the 
DEA. At low doses, it functions as a stimulant that triggers 
alertness and energy. At high doses, kratom can cause sedative 
effects similar to opiates.

Side effects might include nausea, itching and loss of appetite, the 
DEA reports, although some cases of psychosis have been documented, 
including hallucinations and confusion.

Some research suggests kratom can have dangerous interactions if 
taken with prescription drugs. Jacobs said investigators recently 
told her about a Santa Rosa County man found dead after taking kratom.

According to the DEA, the supplement has no "legitimate medical use."

Chris Giblin, owner of smoke shops in Holiday and Clearwater, said 
most of his kratom customers use it to alleviate pain. Since Giblin 
began selling it more than two years ago, kratom has become one of 
the most popular products at his stores.

James Morrissette, a Cape Coral distributor, said many kratom users 
use it to treat fibromyalgia, anxiety and insomnia.

"It's growing," Morrissette said of kratom's popularity. "There's a 
tremendous amount of interest and it's solving problems with many 
people's lives."

Morrissette created the Facebook group, "The American Kratom 
Society," which has more than 1,400 members. Hartman is among them. 
She took prescription drugs for 10 years to cope with back pain 
related to a motorcycle crash.

"I had become addicted to it," she said. "I had taken them for so 
long they weren't working well."

A few years ago, she started taking kratom daily. Her pain is gone 
and she doesn't feel the grogginess triggered by pills, she said. If 
kratom is banned in Florida, Hartman, 42, said she will consider 
moving to another state.

"If this does pass," she said, "it can change my life all over again."

[sidebar]

What is it?

Kratom: a tree growing in southeast Asia that produces leaves used in 
supplements to boost energy or to treat ailments such as pain and insomnia.

How it's taken: In many forms, including capsules and powder that can 
be added to drinks.

States that have banned kratom: Indiana, Tennessee, Vermont and 
Wisconsin. Arizona created an age 21 restriction.

Countries that have banned kratom: Australia, Burma, Thailand and Malaysia.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom