Calley Means just called kratom a “straight up opioid” and “gas station heroin” on
@joerogan, claiming it’s causing deaths, relapses, and “devastation.”
@calleymeans is mixing up two completely different things.
Natural kratom leaf (Mitragyna speciosa) is not heroin. Its primary alkaloid, mitragynine, is a partial mu-opioid agonist with a ceiling effect and G-protein bias — it doesn’t act like a full agonist such as morphine or fentanyl. Trace amounts of 7-OH occur naturally in the leaf after harvest (typically well under 0.04% by weight). It has been used for centuries in traditional preparations.
What regulators are actually targeting is concentrated/synthetic 7-OH products — chemically boosted or isolated versions sold as gummies, shots, and tablets that are far more potent and opioid-like.
In the exact press conference Means references, former FDA Commissioner
@MartyMakary and HHS officials were explicit:
“We’re not targeting the kratom leaf or ground-up kratom. We are targeting the concentrated, synthetic byproduct that is an opioid.”
“They bear no resemblance to botanical kratom that people have consumed for centuries.”
Full press conference:
youtube.com/watch?v=ChOICFOn…
Most reported “kratom-related” deaths involve polydrug use (especially fentanyl and other opioids). Pure leaf has a different risk profile.
Facts over fearmongering.
If you’re tired of the misinformation, share this so the facts reach more people.