What is Kratom and is it Legal in Baltimore?

People now have more than enough resources to rely on when it comes to dealing with various health conditions. Specifically, the shift to herbal medications is easily noticeable across several parts of the world as people seek cost-saving and effective alternatives to synthetic drugs.

One such supplement that has taken the herbal industry by storm is Kratom, a product sourced from Southeast Asia. Most likely, you have heard about this product but still not sure about a few specifics about it, including its origin and types, how people consume it, how it works, and its side effects, among other things. To keep you in the loop, here is an overview of what you need to know about Kratom and its legal status in the city of Baltimore, Maryland.

What is Kratom?

Kratom is an herbal product derived from a plant prevalently grown in Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, and Myanmar. The plant that produces Kratom is scientifically known as Mitragyna speciosa though people love to refer to it as “Kratom plant”. Farmers grow Kratom plants organically and under special conditions to maintain the quality of the products, specifically the right alkaloid content.

Enough sunlight, ample shade, and right proportions of water and nutrients are necessary for the plants to flourish and attain the recommended alkaloid content. Additionally, the processing and storage practices also determine the quality of Kratom sold to consumers all over the world.

There are several strains of Kratom, namely, White Vein, Red Vein, Green Vein, and Maeng Da, whose primary alkaloids are Mitragynine and7-hydroxymitragynine. Other Kratom constituents whose effectiveness and role are still being investigated are mitragynine pseudoindoxyl and mitraphylline. The acceptable percentage content of mitragynine ranges between 1% and 2%, but 7-hydroxymitragynine content can be much lower.

People consume Kratom in various ways. Conventionally, users mix Kratom powder with water or other liquids such as citrus juices whose acidic properties are suggested to increase the effectiveness of the alkaloids. You can also place a small amount of Kratom powder on your tongue and wash it down with water. Other consumers prefer taking Kratom capsules, edibles, and tinctures.

Kratom strains are said to bring about varying effects. Green Vein is claimed to improve alertness and performance among workers, whereas the Red Vein version is suggested to bring about calming effects to its consumers. Kratom users claim to experience an increase in energy and focus upon consuming the White Vein strain. Take note that you might experience dry mouth, nausea, lack of appetite, and itching when consuming Kratom.

Is Kratom legal in Baltimore?

It’s worth mentioning that Kratom is legal in the US at the Federal level, but some states, counties, and cities have banned the product in their jurisdictions. Additionally, some nations, including Thailand, have also put a total ban on Kratom.

Generally, Kratom is currently legal in Baltimore. Nevertheless, you could not buy or distribute Kratom in Baltimore and Maryland as a whole until new laws legalizing Kratom were passed in February 2018. Today, however, vendors and consumers are free to sell, possess, and use Kratom.

Considering that the legalization is still new, it may be quite challenging for Baltimore consumers to find reputable Kratom sellers locally. As they wait for local vendors to take advantage of the new development, Baltimore residents may need to keep on purchasing Kratom from online stores. If you can’t wait for shipping, you might consider buying Kratom at health food stores and smoke shops.

The advantage of buying Kratom online is that you are exposed to a wide selection of Kratom strains and packaging forms. Additionally, you can access the products online at more affordable prices since online Kratom companies are quite generous with discounts and coupon codes for first-time and subsequent purchases.

Online Kratom shoppers should buy their products from well-reputed, popular, and AKA-approved Kratom vendors. For instance, KratomCrazy sells high-quality Kratom that’s lab-tested for alkaloid content, heavy metals, and pathogens besides offering coupons, discounts, and free shipping for orders above $49.

Conclusion

Kratom is now legal in Baltimore, and consumers are free to order their packages both via local physical shops and online. This provides them with an exciting opportunity to enjoy the said benefits of Kratom such calming effects, relaxation, and improvement in focus, energy, and alertness. Online vendors can now ship Kratom to Baltimore. So, consumers can shop for their favorite strains at the comfort of their homes and get a variety of Kratom products delivered to their doorsteps.

Feature photo: By Uomo vitruviano – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12196426