Florida has officially banned 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), one of the alkaloids found in kratom. The Attorney General declared it a Schedule I substance, claiming it’s dangerously potent and highly addictive. Regulators warn it could be “13 times stronger than morphine.” That sounds alarming. But let’s pause for a reality check.
Yes, 7-OH is an opioid. Like all opioids, it carries a risk of dependence. No one disputes that. But the real question is: compared to what?
Here’s the thing — 7-OH is far less dangerous than the opioids already prescribed daily across the U.S. or flooding the streets in illicit forms. Fentanyl and its analogues are killing tens of thousands of Americans each year. Morphine, oxycodone, and hydromorphone are widely prescribed despite their enormous overdose risk. Against that backdrop, 7-OH is an opioid with an unusually wide safety margin. It doesn’t cause the same respiratory depression profile as fentanyl. It has a ceiling effect on respiratory suppression, meaning at high doses the danger doesn’t just keep escalating. In terms of harm reduction, that’s a major difference.
So why ban it?
The easy answer is fear. It looks like an opioid, therefore it must be treated like the most dangerous opioids. But not all opioids are created equal. 7-OH may actually represent something we desperately need: a safer opioid alternative in a country drowning in unsafe ones.
Instead of prohibition, we should be looking at regulation. Require quality control and accurate labeling. Support research into its therapeutic potential. Provide context and guidance for safe use. These are the kinds of measures that save lives. Banning just drives use underground, removes safety nets, and shuts down science before we’ve had a chance to fully understand what’s on the table.
Florida’s move sets a precedent. Other states are watching. The FDA has already recommended national scheduling, and the DEA looks ready to follow through. That would slam the door on research and access, just as overdose deaths from conventional opioids keep climbing.
It feels like history repeating itself: prohibition masquerading as public health, while the substances doing the most damage remain widely available.
If we truly care about reducing harm, we should not be banning safer opioids. We should be studying them, regulating them, and making them part of a smarter, more nuanced approach to addiction and pain.