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What is kratom.org?
kratom.org is a nonprofit organization that lobbies against the FDA's efforts to ban kratom. kratom.org's mission is to support kratom's legal status in the United States and abroad while protecting consumers.
kratom.org has been working to protect kratom's health benefits since 2012, when it was first formed as the Advisory Committee for Natural Products. The organization is comprised of leading experts in the kratom industry and a wide range of medical professionals who believe that kratom can be an effective alternative to opioids for treating pain, depression, anxiety and withdrawal symptoms.
Currently, there are about 10 to 16 million Americans who use kratom for pain and to treat mood disorders such as depression and anxiety. Many also use it to combat withdrawal symptoms from prescription and illicit drugs.
According to a 2016 study by Oliver Grundmann, a professor of medicinal chemistry at the University of Florida, most kratom users reported that they used it for relief from chronic pain, and some also used it for mood disorders such as depression or anxiety. In addition, many claimed to use it to help curb their cravings for opioids, which are frequently obtained on the illicit market and often laced with fentanyl.
Although kratom appears to be safer than most illegal and prescription opioids, overdose is a potential risk, especially when ingested in large doses. One study of more than 1,800 calls to poison control centers found that a few people died after taking kratom.
Some of the deaths were attributed to kratom alone, while others were related to other substances, such as cocaine, heroin or fentanyl. The researchers argued that these types of cases cannot be used to determine the exact role of kratom in an individual's death.
Several of the cases that were initially attributed to kratom involved contaminated or counterfeit products, such as a Swedish batch of kratom that contained toxic levels of o-desmethyltramadol, an opioid analgesic. Other cases involved kratom mixed with other substances, such as acetaminophen or alcohol.
A 2017 article in the New York Times noted that a number of kratom deaths were linked to the product's lax manufacturing practices. In a report on a German case, for instance, the man who died had a mixture of kratom and other substances in his system, including cocaine.
kratom.org is a major proponent of GMP-qualified vendors, which adhere to a strict set of FDA-approved manufacturing standards that ensure kratom is safe for consumption. kratom.org also has a certification program for kratom manufacturers and vendors to verify they are compliant with these standards.
In July 2018, kratom.org formally requested that the FDA review its guidelines for GMP-qualified vendors and issue a proposed rule on how to enforce it. kratom.org's goal is to create a better, more consistent regulatory framework for the kratom industry so that consumers can find and buy kratom products that have been manufactured and tested in accordance with the highest standards possible.
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