Herbal supplements are a huge business in the United States and worldwide. You can go to any grocery or drug store and find shelves filled with many different herbal supplements. There are also a variety of stores that specialize in health supplements and they carry just about any herbal supplement that is legally available.

Millions of Americans take a variety of herbal supplements to address different aspects of their health. Some supplements help control blood sugar levels (like cinnamon) and are taken by many diabetics. Other herbal supplements help control blood pressure or help reduce the amount of plaque that forms in the arteries. Some supplements help improve kidney health (cranberry) or improve prostate health (saw palmetto).

I’ll admit to taking a number of herbal supplements on a daily basis, to help with my type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, prostate and Kidney health and to help boost my suppressed immune system.

Amidst the numerous herbal supplements on the market, there is one that is growing in popularity and one which you need to be warned about.

Have you heard of kratom? Many people are taking kratom or a kratom product to help with pain, anxiety, depression and even a treatment for opioid withdrawal.

There is a reason that kratom works to help with these conditions and that’s because it has been discovered to be an opioid.

The definition of an opioid does not have anything to do with being a product of the opium poppy, but is defined as anything that interacts with the opioid receptors in our body, as explained:

“According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an opioid is a natural or synthetic chemical that interacts with opioid receptors in the body. Based on this definition, compounds in kratom are opioids, because they do act on opioid receptors, said Wes Hunter, the director of pharmacy at UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.”

“It’s true that one of the main active compounds in kratom, called mitragynine, is structurally different from morphine, one of the oldest known opioid drugs derived from the opium poppy, according to a 2012 review paper published in the Journal of Medical Toxicology. But Hunter noted that some synthetic opioids, including fentanyl and methadone, don’t look much like morphine in their structure, either.”

“‘Even though it’s not a direct descendent of the opium plant, it still has direct effects on the opioid receptors,’ Hunter told Live Science.”

Did you know that some synthetic opioids are found in the chemicals in coal tar? Did you also know that loperamide (Imodium) is also an opioid, but does not normally affect the body as one expects most opioids to act, but is used as an anti-diarrheal medicine.

As for kratom, taking large doses can produce an opioid high and there have been at least 44 deaths associated with kratom.

If you take this supplement, be warned that it is an opioid. The long-term effects are not known, but like any opioid, can directly affect one’s health and cause other complications.