A “Room for Debate” article I chose to read was about Kratom. Kratom, a plant largely grown in Thailand, is used as a euphoriant when used as a recreational drug or can also be used to lessen the symptoms of opiate withdrawal, cough, and high blood pressure, if used as a medicine. The United States Drug Enforcement Administrations reversed its decision to temporarily classify kratom’s chemical constituents in the same way as opiates. People argue if the drug is merely another form of an addiction or an alternative to an opiate withdrawal. In “Benefits of Kratom Are More Legitimate Than the Fears,” Marc T. Swogger and Elaine Hart write that Kratom has already become an alternative treatment for overcoming an opiate addiction; they state that the use of kratom was successful in effectively treating the addiction. Because there is no solid evidence of kratom being a dangerous drug, they believe that the D.E.A has insufficient reason to limit the use of kratom. In fact, they believe that criminalizing the drug would only do more harm, especially to those who will not go to treatment facilities because they would have less types of options for treatment and also, prison populations would rise as well. On the other hand, David Galbis-Reig, author of “There’s Too Much Risk of Danger for Kratom to Be Legal,” concludes that kratom should be banned until there is further research being done to determine if it does have the medical benefits people say it does. Since kratom’s main ingredient is mitragynine, which has both opioid and stimulant properties, it would be the same as just using one opioid instead of another. He expresses that in Thailand, 60 percent of its users have admitted to being addicted or abusing kratom. My take on this matter is that kratom should be banned or be labeled as Schedule 1 Controlled Substance because there isn’t any significant evidence to report that the use of kratom is safe. Further testing should be done to see if kratom actually does help addicts overcome their addiction or if it simply is another type of addictive drug. Do you believe Kratom should be legal? Why or why not? If so, what regulations do you believe should be placed?
Judging by the data collected in Thailand, I think that is reason enough to be wary of the effects of Kratom. If 60% of Kratom users in Thailand have already become addicted to the drug or have abused it, then it is clearly not a good replacement for people who suffer from an opiate addiction. The benefits from using Kratom are likely temporary. Although it may satiate an opiate addiction, simultaneously it also runs a high risk of getting addicted to the drug itself which is supposed to help. I think it is safer for those who have an opiate addiction to seek out safer methods to fix their condition, instead of taking a possibly detrimental risk which can result in the worsening of their situation. Therefore, Kratom should not be legal until the United States Drug Enforcement Administrations finds a way to significantly minimize the risk of using the drug. Until then, Kratom should be banned and undergo further examination.
ReplyDeleteFirst, deeming drugs as illegal rarely does anything to reduce the abuse of the drug. Proper education of the effects that drugs may have on people works better. Looking at ourselves and our high school peers, we can testify that some of us will do something for the sole reason that someone told us we could not do it. If Kratom has potential benefits to help opioid addicts, it should not be classified as an illegal substance. The number of opioid addicts has been increasing in the United States. Finding ways to treat addicts is imperative to bettering society. Professionals should consider Kratom as a substance with the potential to help thousands, extensive research following.
ReplyDeleteKratom should be an illegal drug as said in the article for now. It is like going from one opiate to another one. However I will say if more testing is done and there is actually benefits from taking this drug then you can make it legal. Even if a drug is illegal or legal there can still be substance abuse for any drug. Proper education on substance abuse and laws can help with this. With any new drug that is made there will always be benefits and also negatives about it. Sometimes you have to ask do the benefits out weigh the risk.
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ReplyDeleteFrom the given information, Kratom seems to be aiding recovering addicts from opioid use to some extent. Kratom becomes the replacement for drugs like heroin for former users, but what good is using an addictive drug to stop people from using another addictive drug? Research shows that Kratom is potentially more dangerous than most other opioid drugs and symptoms are more severe; Healthline states that users of Kratom who overdosed had respiratory depressions and were prone to seizures, which would not normally happen with other opiates. While advocates claim that Kratom relieves anxiety, depression, and combats addictions to other drugs, it’s likely that users will abuse the drug after using it consistently and former addicts will replace their old addictions with an addiction to Kratom. The claims that Kratom is useful medically is inaccurate because there hasn’t been enough research to decide if there are any medical benefits, hence Kratom has no business being used as a therapy tool when there is much possibility that Kratom will become the problem and not the solution. As a firm believer that too much of something is bad, and anything in moderation is good, I do not approve of using another opioid in efforts to relieve an addiction to opioids (It’s basically like bumping up a few extra dosages of the addict’s original opiate, instead of helping them move on). Because of the lack of information about any health benefits Kratom possesses, the product should be banned until there is solid evidence that the drug is actually beneficial.