CDPH Warns Retailers and Public About the Dangers of Kratom-derived Products and 7-OH

Such marketing practices have coincided with increasing reports of pediatric exposures to poison centers and greater access to these products by minors. It also added labeling requirements—including a list of all ingredients, the amount of natural product, and the vendors and address. Oklahoma lawmakers passed a law in 2021 putting regulations on the sale of kratom.

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• That means that even if federal law allows kratom supplements like “feel free,” the company is able to comply with Utah regulations “by simply declining to sell feel free in Utah.”
• This resolution protects consumers by taking these products off Missouri shelves.”
• The patient did have a history of opioid use disorder, but he was in recovery.
• Manufacturers & re-sellers assume no responsibility or liability for the use or misuse of this product.
• “As I understand it, from people who are familiar with the President’s view on this, that he was speaking about natural kratom, as opposed to synthetic or chemically manipulated 7-OH,” Haddow told PNN.
• Ryan Scafe, Director of Client Relations at Renew Ministries, noted the rising number of people struggling with kratom dependency.

This risk may be higher in people who use high doses of kratom or people who also use street drugs or drink alcohol. This risk may be higher in people who use high doses of kratom or people who also use street drugs. Mental health professionals can help their patients by educating them on the risks of kratom and derivative use, identifying patients with dependence or addiction, and providing treatment or referral to an addiction specialist. Many clinicians manage kratom dependence similarly to dependence of other opioids, using combinations of medications and behavioral interventions.

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• “I think people are buying these drinks like Feel Free thinking they’re healthy alternatives to alcohol,” Dr. Poorman added.
• Kratom bans have also been the most frequent tool employed by localities, such as Albuquerque (NM), Kansas City (MO), Nassau County (NY), and Spokane (WA), to try to limit the presence of kratom in their communities.
• Kratom is a leafy plant native to southeast Asia, that has found popularity in the United States due its psychoactive properties.
• FitzGerald said he plans to draft a proposal that would ban synthetic versions of the drug, and potentially place age restrictions requiring ID at the point of sale for non-synthetic, or natural, kratom.
• It wasn’t long before Beutler found herself returning to her local kava bar in Idaho for kratom every day.
• Many of the people we spoke with had no history of substance abuse before ingesting kratom.

Kratom is legal statewide for adults, but the state enforces age verification (21+), proper labeling, and the prohibition of adulterated products. The Texas Department of State Health Services issued warnings in 2025 about concentrated 7-OH products, citing a spike sids 2014 in poison control calls. Some states ban kratom outright, while others regulate it through consumer protection frameworks. Both kratom legality by state and 7-OH legality vary widely. In June 2025, the FDA also issued warning letters to seven companies marketing concentrated 7-OH products.

Not all users are understanding that fact, however — while others may seek synthetic products out intentionally. “And they sell it as kratom, even though it has nothing to do with the kratom plant itself — doesn’t resemble the composition, doesn’t resemble anything.” “You have things like mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, which is not found in the kratom leaf,” he said. Although only present in small amounts in the leaves of kratom, 7-OH is produced by the body as a byproduct of mitragynine, the primary psychoactive alkaloid in kratom. It quickly gained traction as a way of helping people get off of heroin or other opioids. It was in a similar form that kratom first arrived in the U.S. in the early 2000s — as a powder made from the dried leaves that people could take with water, or brew into a tea.

Patients using kratom should be educated about the potential for dependence, addiction, and overdose. Fatal opioid overdoses involving kratom increased from 0.5% of all opioid-related deaths in 2016 to 2% in 2022. Internationally, kratom is illegal in several European and Asian countries.