CONTRIBUTED PHOTO More kratom is appearing in stores throughout Marshalltown. One way the substance can be found is in capsule form.

Signs outside gas stations and shops have been popping up more frequently in Marshalltown during the last year advertising a substance mysterious to many.

Kratom is a naturally grown herb from Thailand typically sold in capsules and mixed into tea. The substance is legal and unregulated in Iowa like in most states.

“All types of people use it,” Marshalltown Shag employee Danielle Catron said. The Marshalltown Shag store is one vendor of kratom in Marshalltown.

“For a lot of people it helps them get through their work day,” she said.

Users of kratom take it for different reasons, including consuming various strains for different effects. Some say kratom boosts their mood and energizes them, in a similar fashion to coffee. Others take kratom in larger amounts for sedative effects, pain relief and in some cases to wean off of opioids. Kratom interacts with both opioid receptors and stimulant receptors in the brain, which is why those with opiate addictions have used kratom to control withdrawal symptoms.

Different strains of kratom are identified by their color of vein. The red vein is known for its pain relief, while the white vein is energizing and the green vein is for relaxation.

“I have lower back pain a lot and I have taken the red strain for pain relief,” Catron said. “It works wonderful for me.”

Employee Josh Brown of Marshalltown Tobacco and Vape Outlet, a kratom vendor, said he consumes kratom two to three times per week. He said the effects are very gentle, not a sharp feeling of euphoria, but provides a relaxing and uplifting feeling.

“If I don’t have the ability to get my Dunkin’ Donuts in the morning I might pop a white vein and down it with a soda or water and I’m good,” Brown said.

Brown has a genetic illness called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which causes him to experience a lot of joint pain. While consuming the red vein of kratom meant for pain relief, he said he experienced numbness in his joints.

“So with that it did help a bit to an extent, but it was like taking an Excedrin,” Brown said.

Because kratom is not regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sellers of kratom cannot legally market their product with complete certainty of its effects.

Brown said he has to be particular about how he sells kratom.

“I tell people we have pamphlets if they have questions, but I do tell people it is not an FDA regulated product and to use it with your own discretion,” Brown said. “I can’t sit here and market it as, ‘This is absolutely what’s going to happen when you take this.’ I can tell you that, these are the claims, this is what I’ve experienced and how much I would recommend you take.”

He recommends first time users to take one to two capsules of the white vein strain, which he said feels similar to drinking a cup of espresso.

“You’re just awake, alert and when you come down from it there’s no crash like with caffeine,” Brown said.

The Drug Enforcement Agency lists kratom as a “drug and chemical of concern,” and the FDA warns against its consumption.

Some users have reported dependence and addiction to kratom, including experiencing physical withdrawal symptoms such as muscle aches, insomnia and mood changes.

The FDA warns against kratom consumption due to the concern of the potential risk for addiction, abuse and dependence.

The most recent data available on deaths associated with kratom shows it listed as the cause of death in 91 overdoses across 11 states during an 18-month period between July 2016 and December 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC also found kratom was the single substance involved in only seven of the 91 deaths. Many kratom-associated deaths were the result of the substance being spiked or laced with other unwanted substances, or from taking it in combination with other potent substances and illicit drugs.

“A lot of cheaper kratom you see in pop-up stores, there’s filler in them, they use other substances, which is why we waited so long to pick it up,” Brown said. “It is, for all intensive purposes, a beneficial product when used properly. But when abused it has its problems, just like with anything else.”

The kratom sold at Marshalltown Vape and Tobacco Outlet is from the company Sunstone Organics, which lab tests products to ensure it is fully organic material. The Sunstone Organics website does provide a disclaimer telling consumers to not use kratom to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The disclaimer also says to consult a physician before consuming kratom about potential interactions, possible complications and precautionary measures. Brown said if abused, one could become dependent on kratom, but it would have to take extreme amounts to get there.

The Prevention Services Director of the Substance Abuse Unit of Central Iowa in Marshalltown Shannon Chyma said they have not seen any cases of kratom abuse or addiction in isolation. She does not recommend opiate addicts use kratom as a method of treating withdrawals or fighting addiction.

“If we have people that are trying to get off of opioids, they go to health care and we work closely with them,” Chyma said.

As to kratom’s increased presence in stores, Brown said it’s simply how the market works.

“Once one store gets it, other stores are just going to start picking it up and it’s going to boom,” Brown said. “You just have to make sure you maintain the best price point, the best quality product and the safest product.”

Contact Trevor Babcock at 641-753-6611 or tbabcock@timesrepublican.com.