Kratom is an extract from the Asian plant Mitragyna, family Rubiaceae species Korthals (named after the Dutch researcher who discovered it). The tree itself, despite its prevalence in other parts of the globe, comes from Thailand. Basically, kratom grows in the central and southern parts of the country, it is less common in the north. The Rubiaceae family is widespread in subtropical regions of Asia and Africa. It includes a huge number of different species, and, by the way, the coffee tree also belongs to it. The growing zone of Asian Kratom is usually tropical forest, while its African counterpart (also called Hallea) grows in swamps. Most subspecies of kratom are tree-like and sometimes reach a height of up to thirty meters. Korthaus gave the name "Mitragyna" to this species of plant, because the receptacles of the flowers, the very first individual he studied, reminded him of the miter worn by Bishops. A characteristic feature of the tree is its flowers, which are collected in spherical inflorescences of up to 120 flowers each. When ripening, Kratom flowers are covered with dense, overlapping bracts that help the plant protect the buds from birds and insects. Where they grow, Kratom trees are used not only for medicinal purposes, but also as a source of excellent wood and used to build houses, pontoons and boats. The Kratom tree itself is usually 15 meters tall and up to 45 centimeters wide. The trunk of the tree is straight and abundantly planted with thick branches. The flowers are yellow. The leaves of the kratom are dark green and slightly glisten in the light, have an oval-sharp shape and grow opposite each other in a bizarre order. This plant is evergreen, but it drops its leaves from time to time to grow them again in another place. New leaves in kratom grow very quickly. Also, the tree has several off-season leaves, which it sheds due to a change in the growing environment. During the dry season, Kratom part with its leaves willingly, and in the rainy season you can observe their active growth. When a tree grows outside its natural environment, the leaves fall in winter. It feels best on moist, chernozem soil. Being a foodie, he prefers soil rich in minerals. The plant is sensitive to drought, and if it does not grow in its environment, then to cold. It reproduces with the help of seeds or shoots, but the reproduction of this plant is sometimes difficult. In the wet forests of Asia and Africa, an endogenous parasitic fungus that attacks the xylem tissues of the tree is widespread.
More than twenty-five alkaloids were extracted from kratom. The strongest consist of three indoles and two oxindoles. The indoles mitragynine and paynanthine are unique and present only in kratom, and the indol speciogynin is also found in other plants. Kratom oxidols are mitraphilin and speciofolin. Other plant alkaloids contain such idols and oxindoles as: ajmalicine, corynanthedine, mitraversine, rhychophylline, and stipulatine. Mitragynine is the main alkaloid of kratom. For the first time, this alkaloid was extracted in 1907 by D. Hooper, and this process was repeated by a scientist named E. Field, who gave the substance this name. The structure of the alkaloid was fully deciphered only in 1964 by scientists D. Zacharias, R. Rosenstein and E. Jeffery. The molecular skeleton of the substance is similar to the alkaloids of the Yohimbe tree and voacangine.
They are further related to other tryptamine psychedelics such as psilocybin and LSD. The chemical name of mitragin is 9-methoxy-corynantheidine. Its formula is C23H30N2O4, and its molecular weight is 398.5. In its pure form, the substance has the form of crystals that melt at 102-106 degrees (hydrochloride salts, for example, melt at 243 degrees) and boil at 230-240 degrees. The crystals dissolve well in alcohol, chloroform and acetic acid. Kratom leaves consist of 0.5 percent alkaloids, a good half of which is mitragynine. The average leaf of this tree weighs 1.7 g fresh and 0.43 g dry. Twenty leaves contain approximately 17 milligrams of mitragynine! A lot. Kratom leaves also contain the alkaloids mitragynine, speciogenine, painanthine and a small amount of speciocilatine. Oxindole alkaloids are found in small quantities, they are much more abundant in branches and bark. Depending on the place of growth and the season, kratom has a different alkaloid composition. It undergoes minor changes from month to month. Each specific growth zone has its own alkaloid composition. But if the indole component of kratom alkaloids is relatively stable, the oxindole alkaloids in plants of different species are completely different.
Traditionally, Mitragin Kratom is only used in Thailand, although there have been several reports of its use in Malaysia. In Thailand, in addition to the classic name, it is also called Itang, Kakaum, and in the southern regions Tom. The origins of the culture of Kratom use go so far into the past that it is not known for certain how long ago the people of Asia began to use this wonderful plant. In any case, the habit of using kratom as a drug appeared a long time ago, it probably served in addition to opium or completely replaced it for the people of the East. In traditional medicine, it was often used in the treatment of diarrhea, circulatory disorders, and insomnia. Some used the plant to prolong or restore their sexual powers.
There are many different species of this tree in the world, the two main ones are distinguished by the color of veins on the leaves - red or white-green. Trees with red veins on the leaves
have a stronger effect. Researchers have found that those who use kratom medicinally prefer a mixture of the two types. Australian breeders claim that the red and white veins on the leaves appear regardless of the species of tree, but from the weather conditions and places of germination, and all the trees on the Australian continent that are red- and green-dwelling come from the same donor tree and the color of the leaves on the leaves is only an indicator of the concentration of alkaloids. There is no more difference between them.
Kratom is usually consumed by chewing its leaves. In the same way, they are crushed and eaten fresh or dried, and then an infusion is made. In some villages, residents add leaves to their food. Food with added kratom and salt is good for prevention and treatment of constipation. And avid curoles and drunkards add it to alcoholic cocktails. The leaves are usually washed down with something hot, water or coffee. You can also smoke the leaves of the plant, make tea from them, or extract an extract in the form of an aromatic resin from young shoots. Resin is prepared by repeatedly boiling tree leaves in water, then small balls are rolled from the obtained mass with the help of flour, which can lie in the pocket for a long time before they are eaten. Resin balls are the most popular way to eat kratom. It is most often used by workers, peasants and peasants of adult age to cope with the hardships of their hard work and to brighten up their meager everyday life. Women use the plant extremely rarely. The research did not provide unambiguous data on whether there are cases of addiction to it in the villages where the plant is used: some scientists say that there is, others that there is not. Probably, if the doses of kratom are high enough and consumed with high frequency, it begins to act on the mu-receptors and a person can still become addicted. Some villagers chew the resin 3 to 10 times a day, while a novice only needs a few leaves to get the desired effect, some, especially addicts, increase the dose to thirty leaves a day. And this is not the limit. In other parts of the country, parents believe that it is better to marry their daughter to a man who uses krat than to a smoker of marijuana. This is because those who chew kratom resin are considered hard workers, and those who do not mind smoking weed are considered lazy and gluttons. This myth is inspired by kratom addicts themselves, who tell everyone that they started chewing kratom in order to work harder and more efficiently, because it increases their strength and desire to work.
On August 3, 1943, the Thai government issued Decree 2486 on the use of kratom. They could not pass a law to completely eradicate this plant in the country, but the decree contained an act on the illegality of growing Kratom. Surplus grown trees were cut down. Funds from the sale of wood went to help patients with short-term addiction. Today, Thai law puts kratom on the same level as cocaine and heroin. The penalties for selling and using the drug are the same. Carrying more than 30 grams is punishable by death. In fact, countries are much more loyal to kratom users. Like all such laws, Thailand's ban on kratom only affected its price on the black market. Often people use kratom's cousin Mitragyna javanica (Mitragyna javanica) as a legal alternative, but this entheogen is not as effective. The dominant alkaloid in this group of plants, mitrajavine, has not yet been well studied by pharmacology.
Although the main alkaloids in Kratom are similar in structure to psychedelics, they do not cause glucination at all. The effect of the plant is similar to the effect of opiate herbs, it is also an analgesic and suppresses any manifestations of cough, as it strongly relaxes the muscles of the chest and slows down the rhythm of breathing. Codeine drugs have the same effect. Mitragynine suppresses the addict's desire to take opiates, but it cannot fully replace its opiate friend nalorphine. Upon contact with these substances, delta and mu receptors are actively stimulated in the human brain. In small doses, mitragynine acts like yohimbine, mainly at alpha receptors and to a lesser extent at delta opioid receptors. When the dose is increased, the effect on alpha and, accordingly, on delta receptors increases, but at the same time, substances begin to affect mu receptors as well. Ultimately, the mu-receptors fall under opiate addiction. While delta receptors acquire a relatively small substance abuse potential, mu receptors begin to actively use them as a bridge in order to attract as much mitragynine as possible, here the brain receives much stronger and euphoric experiences compared to morphine. Mitragynine also has a sedative effect on the body, reducing muscle tone, anesthetizing and relaxing muscles. The activity of the nervous system decreases. Pronounced effects include: dry lips, frequent urges to the toilet, loss of appetite, constipation accompanied by hard black stools. Unlike opiates, mitragynine does not cause nausea and vomiting. Abuse and overdose can only cause a long sleep. Side effects from long-term use include: weight loss and anorexia, insomnia and darkening of the skin, as well as sunken cheeks that make the face look like hepatitis. Among those who are addicted, 30% admitted that they cannot feel sexual excitement and, together with krat, they have to use alcohol to somehow get themselves. Five people were also found to be in an extremely unstable mental state. It was difficult to judge whether it was caused by the lattice or something else. As mentioned earlier, the plant is addictive only with frequent and excessive use. When giving up kratom, ardent lovers noted signs of hostility, aggression, loss of strength, severe depression, sweating in the face, pain in muscles and bones, swaying and limping. Thai people's observations of the effect of the plant and their opinions about it are contradictory. Although the main alkaloids in Kratom are similar in structure to psychedelics, they do not cause glucination at all. The effect of the plant is similar to the effect of opiate herbs, it is also an analgesic and suppresses any manifestations of cough, as it strongly relaxes the muscles of the chest and slows down the rhythm of breathing. Codeine drugs have the same effect. Mitragynine suppresses the addict's desire to take opiates, but it cannot fully replace its opiate friend nalorphine. Upon contact with these substances, delta and mu receptors are actively stimulated in the human brain. In small doses, mitragynine acts like yohimbine, mainly at alpha receptors and to a lesser extent at delta opioid receptors. When the dose is increased, the effect on alpha and, accordingly, on delta receptors increases, but at the same time, substances begin to affect mu receptors as well. Finally, mu-receptors fall under opiate addiction. While delta receptors acquire a relatively small substance abuse potential, mu-receptors begin to actively use them as a bridge in order to attract as much mitragynine as possible, here the brain receives already much stronger and euphoric experiences compared to morphine. Mitragynine also has a sedative effect on the body, reducing muscle tone, anesthetizing and relaxing muscles. The activity of the nervous system decreases. Pronounced effects include: dry lips, frequent urges to the toilet, loss of appetite, constipation accompanied by hard black stools. Unlike opiates, mitragynine does not cause nausea and vomiting. Abuse and overdose can only cause a long sleep. Side effects from long-term use include weight loss and anorexia, insomnia and darkening of the skin, as well as sunken cheeks that make the face look like hepatitis. Among those who are addicted, 30% admitted that they cannot feel sexual excitement and, together with krat, they have to use alcohol in order to somehow get themselves started. Five people were also found to be in an extremely unstable mental state. It was difficult to judge whether it was caused by the lattice or something else. As mentioned earlier, the plant is addictive only with frequent and excessive use. When giving up kratom, ardent lovers noted signs of hostility, aggression, loss of strength, severe depression, sweating in the face, pain in muscles and bones, swaying and limping. Thai people's views on the effect of the plant and their opinions about it are contradictory.
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