Exposing the Truth: How the AKA’s Stance on 7-OH Serves Big Kratom, Not Consumers

Help Save 7-OH

The American Kratom Association (AKA) presents itself as a consumer advocacy group dedicated to protecting kratom users. However, beneath the surface lies a troubling pattern of fear-based messaging, scientific distortion, and questionable financial motives—especially when it comes to 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), one of kratom’s most potent and naturally occurring alkaloids.

The Demonization of 7-OH: Science vs. Spin

The AKA’s public stance paints 7-OH as a dangerous compound, frequently linking it to addiction and health risks. They push this narrative aggressively—yet their messaging often omits key scientific facts:

• 7-OH is a natural metabolite of mitragynine, the primary alkaloid in kratom. It’s not an artificial additive, nor is it inherently dangerous in controlled, low concentrations.
• Numerous animal and cellular studies suggest that 7-OH plays a crucial role in kratom’s analgesic effects without showing the same respiratory depression risk as traditional opioids.
• Peer-reviewed research also demonstrates that kratom does not behave like classical opioids in terms of overdose or addiction profile, even when 7-OH is present.

Despite this, the AKA continues to misrepresent 7-OH as the “evil molecule” in kratom, cherry-picking data and ignoring recent pharmacological insights. Why?

Follow the Money: Protecting Big Kratom Interests

The AKA has forged strong alliances with a handful of large kratom companies that dominate the U.S. retail market. These companies typically:

• Sell leaf-based, low-potency kratom products with minimal 7-OH content.
• Oppose innovation in extract-based or standardized formulations that utilize bioactive alkaloids like 7-OH for consistent dosing and medical research.
• Lobby for regulations that effectively box out smaller players producing refined or novel alkaloid blends, which often include 7-OH in safer, microdosed formulations.

This is no accident. The demonization of 7-OH benefits Big Kratom by stigmatizing competitors, muddying consumer understanding, and shaping regulatory narratives in their favor.

In fact, many of the companies most closely aligned with the AKA sell products that contain trace or even measurable amounts of 7-OH themselves—they just don’t label it. This duplicity highlights the true motivation: control over the market, not consumer safety.

Fear-Mongering as a Marketing Tool

Rather than educating consumers about the pharmacodynamics and safe use of 7-OH, the AKA relies on fear-mongering and public scare tactics, including:

• Using loaded language like “synthetic opioids” to describe natural kratom extracts.
• Promoting misleading comparisons to fentanyl, despite no chemical or functional similarity.
• Amplifying fringe anecdotal cases and misattributed deaths without clear toxicology data or autopsy transparency.

This approach does not protect consumers—it confuses them, vilifies innovation, and weaponizes misinformation to preserve an outdated, low-potency product monopoly.

The Future of Kratom: Education, Not Gatekeeping

If we are truly committed to kratom safety and legitimacy, we must embrace:

• Transparent science-based education about all alkaloids, including 7-OH.
• Third-party testing and standardized labeling of alkaloid content.
• Support for research into therapeutic applications of 7-OH and other kratom constituents.
• Fair regulation that welcomes responsible innovation—not protectionist policies for entrenched interests.

The kratom community deserves more than half-truths and political theater. The real enemy isn’t 7-OH—it’s the manipulation of public perception in service of market consolidation.