# Kratom **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 21, 2016, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475 "2016-08-21T02:55:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/21 "2016-08-24T00:58:06Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > What’s the other drug I’m thinking of? It’s an orange fruit from west Africa and when people take it they have a trip and afterwards they don’t feel like being addicted anymore. > > Anyone remember? Ibogaine > **[Tabernanthe iboga](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabernanthe_iboga)** > > Tabernanthe iboga (iboga) is an evergreen rainforest shrub native to Central Africa. A member of the Apocynaceae family indigenous to Gabon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of Congo, it is cultivated across Central Africa for its medicinal and other effects. > In African traditional medicine and rituals, the yellowish root or bark is used to produce hallucinations and near-death outcomes, with some fatalities occurring. In high doses, ibogaine is considered to be toxic, and h... > **[Ibogaine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibogaine)** > > Ibogaine is an psychoactive indole alkaloid obtained either by extraction from plants in the family Apocynaceae such as Tabernanthe iboga, Voacanga africana, and Tabernaemontana undulata or by semi-synthesis from the precursor compound voacangine, another plant alkaloid. The total synthesis of ibogaine was described in 1956. Structural elucidation by X-ray crystallography was completed in 1960. > The psychoactivity of the root bark of the iboga tree, Tabernanthe iboga, one of the plants from wh... ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/22 "2016-08-24T01:00:52Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Ibogaine > > [Tabernanthe iboga - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabernanthe_iboga) > > [Ibogaine - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibogaine) Thank you! Exactly right. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/23 "2016-08-24T06:35:27Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > You clearly have an unusual definition of the word “drug”. What is **your** definition of that word? This really needn’t be an argument about what the definition of a drug is. It’s a drug, so what? It’s an interesting plant, however you classify it. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2016, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/24 "2016-08-30T19:50:10Z")
Well I didn’t think this would be happening so soon in the U.S., figuring it would stay a state-by-state issue for a while yet. But [the DEA just filed their intent for “emergency” scheduling of the active constituents of kratom as a Schedule I substance](https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2016-20803.pdf). RIP for this wonderful plant. It was good while it lasted. ---
**Author:** ![ReticulatingSplines](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2016, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/25 "2016-08-30T22:14:43Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > And \*\*Rigamarole \*\*is right; it tastes like Satan’s nut sack. I’m going to have to disagree. It tastes nowhere near as good as Satan’s nutsack. It tastes like Satan’s nutsack if you dipped it in five-hour-old dog vomit mixed with dirt. I can’t take it because it makes me so nauseous. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2016, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/26 "2016-08-30T22:20:23Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Well I didn’t think this would be happening so soon in the U.S., figuring it would stay a state-by-state issue for a while yet. But [the DEA just filed their intent for “emergency” scheduling of the active constituents of kratom as a Schedule I substance](https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2016-20803.pdf). RIP for this wonderful plant. It was good while it lasted. Warmest Regards, **The United States Drug Enforcement Agency** “_No Buzz Left Unkilled_” ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2016, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/27 "2016-08-30T22:25:38Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Well I didn’t think this would be happening so soon in the U.S., figuring it would stay a state-by-state issue for a while yet. But [the DEA just filed their intent for “emergency” scheduling of the active constituents of kratom as a Schedule I substance](https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2016-20803.pdf). RIP for this wonderful plant. It was good while it lasted. I heard about this, those authoritarian fuckers just can’t let people be happy at home can they. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/28 "2016-08-31T04:44:19Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I heard about this, those authoritarian fuckers just can’t let people be happy at home can they. Well, any time a plant comes along that makes people actually feel good, it’s obviously a menace to society (or as the DEA phrases it in the filing, “an imminent hazard to the public safety”). Thank goodness we have our kindly Big Brother to protect us from ourselves by dictating what adults can and can’t put in their bodies. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/29 "2016-08-31T12:56:22Z")
I’m actually surprised it took as long as it did. As I said: > [@Some Asshole Back in 2013](#): > > If kratom is being sold in gas stations/head shops now, that’s clearly the beginning of the end for it. Start counting down to the day some teenage moron crams a 10,000x dose up his ass with a rubber hose and bellows and then passes out in his car while jerking off to Maroon 5 with the engine running in a closed garage. That grey-haired ghoul on Dateline will call it the “new bath salts” and conduct a couple of hidden-camera ambushes of shifty-eyed South Asian convenience store clerks intercut with extreme close-ups of the tearful parents being interviewed about their campaign for “[Name of Teenage Moron]'s Law,” which will of course be passed unanimously almost overnight. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/30 "2016-08-31T16:45:34Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Thank goodness we have our kindly Big Brother to protect us from ourselves by dictating what adults can and can’t put in their bodies. I believe it is still legal to put live snakes in your body. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/31 "2016-08-31T17:13:15Z")
My experience: If you want to pay a lot of money and taste something like Satan’s own asshole and then go to sleep, Kratom is an excellent candidate. Oh, and there’s a non-trivial chance of addiction. Apart from that, you’re better off seeing what your local MD will write and your insurance will spring for. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/32 "2016-08-31T17:32:24Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I’m actually surprised it took as long as it did. As I said: HAY!! What’s so wrong with jacking off to Maroon 5? ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/33 "2016-08-31T20:45:51Z")
I tried it once on recommendation of friends. We made tea. It was the worst thing I’ve ever tasted; we got a 30-minute Vicodin-like buzz then threw up our guts for three hours. Granted, I may have had the recipe wrong, but it makes me gag to even think about that day. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/34 "2016-08-31T21:41:02Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Well, any time a plant comes along that makes people actually feel good, it’s obviously a menace to society (or as the DEA phrases it in the filing, “an imminent hazard to the public safety”). Thank goodness we have our kindly Big Brother to protect us from ourselves by dictating what adults can and can’t put in their bodies. Some users are upset because they feel kratom helps cope with withdrawal effects of heroin, and provides a lower intensity alternative for people who do not want to try something harder. Their argument is this ban will make the issue worse. Not that the DEA gives a damn about the well being of the public. Their agenda is to justify their own existence, and they do that by banning as many drugs as possible so they always have something to do. ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/35 "2016-08-31T21:42:05Z")
TIL: Satan’s nutsack and Satan’s asshole taste alike. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/36 "2016-08-31T21:43:56Z")
> [@Personal](#): > > TIL: Satan’s nutsack and Satan’s asshole taste alike. No, they really don’t. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/37 "2016-08-31T21:51:15Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > **Some users are upset because they feel kratom helps cope with withdrawal effects of heroin,** and provides a lower intensity alternative for people who do not want to try something harder. Their argument is this ban will make the issue worse. > > Not that the DEA gives a damn about the well being of the public. Their agenda is to justify their own existence, and they do that by banning as many drugs as possible so they always have something to do. The PDF that Rigmarole linked to said the action is against the two main constituents in kratom. Those were identified as having opiod-like effects. > [@](#): > > Mitragynine and 7 > -hydroxymitragynine, the main active constituents of the plant > kratom > Mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine are the main active constituents of the plant Mitragyna speciosaKorth (commonly known as kratom), an > indigenous plant of Southeast Asia. > Kratom is the only known species of Mitragyna to contain mitragynine > and 7-hydroxymitragynine.Kratom is abused for its ability to produce opioid-like effects. That makes sense as to why they would look at scheduling it. I’d say more reason that keeping marijuana at Sched 1. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/38 "2016-08-31T23:09:53Z")
> [@Personal](#): > > TIL: Satan’s nutsack and Satan’s asshole taste alike. > [@levdrakon](#): > > No, they really don’t. How do you people _know this?_ ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2016, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/39 "2016-08-31T23:12:39Z")
We dated. Don’t judge. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2016, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475/40 "2016-09-01T07:04:00Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > My experience: If you want to pay a lot of money and taste something like Satan’s own asshole and then go to sleep, Kratom is an excellent candidate. Oh, and there’s a non-trivial chance of addiction. Apart from that, you’re better off seeing what your local MD will write and your insurance will spring for. You have very strange substance reactions, since kratom is a relative of the coffee plant and in addition to the opioid effects, has some stimulant effects as well. Certain strains (“green”) are supposed to be relatively more sedating though, with “white” strains being more stimmy, and “red” strains being somewhere in between. I’ve only ever sought out white strains, because I need the energy. But it definitely works in that regard and is the exact opposite of something that would make me go to sleep. And putting it in gel caps can negate most of the bad taste. Drinking alcohol, however, which is something I know you are quite famous for doing, tends to make me instantly and massively tired. How strange bodies are. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kratom/763475.md?page=3)