The difference between natural kratom and synthetics like 7-OH
One is a leaf people have used for centuries. The other is a lab-concentrated opioid that FDA says can be stronger than morphine. They are being sold side by side under the same name. Here is how to tell them apart.
What 7-OH is
7-hydroxymitragynine is a metabolite of mitragynine. It is not made by the living kratom tree; small amounts form through oxidation as harvested leaves dry. In a natural leaf product, 7-OH is a trace component, under 2 percent of total alkaloids, and at that level poses no safety risk.
Beginning in 2023, manufacturers began chemically converting mitragynine into 7-OH at scale and pressing it into tablets, shots and gummies. These products flip the plant's alkaloid balance: they are mostly 7-OH with little or no mitragynine. Concentrated 7-OH behaves like a classic opioid. NIDA notes it can cause respiratory depression in laboratory models, the effect natural mitragynine does not produce. A related compound, mitragynine pseudoindoxyl ("pseudo," "MP"), is also being sold and is considered even more addictive.
What the government has done
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| Sept. 2, 2026 | AKA files a federal lawsuit asking the court to ensure enforcement against enhanced MGPI (mitragynine pseudoindoxyl) does not sweep in natural kratom, which contains only non-enhanced trace amounts. |
| July 1, 2026 | DEA confirms that chemically manipulated 7-OH products are not kratom. |
| June 22, 2026 | Florida's Attorney General takes enforcement action against 7-OH products. |
| Aug. 2025 | AKA formally endorses Schedule I for 7-OH and urges states to use emergency scheduling authority. |
| July 29, 2025 | HHS and FDA recommend that DEA place 7-OH in Schedule I. FDA's consumer page, Hiding in Plain Sight: 7-OH Products, warns that retailers are misleading consumers by calling these products kratom. |
| Jan. 21, 2025 | AKA issues its first consumer alert on 7-OH products. |
Why the distinction matters to you
The safety evidence for kratom, FDA's dose study, NIDA's findings, and the June 2026 NIH clinical trial, all concern natural leaf and its main alkaloid. None of it applies to 7-OH concentrates. Conflating the two harms consumers twice: people buy an opioid thinking it is a botanical, and lawmakers ban the botanical thinking it is the opioid. Every recent local ban AKA has tracked was driven by 7-OH incidents.
Side by side
| Natural leaf kratom | 7-OH and pseudoindoxyl products | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Dried Mitragyna speciosa leaf, or extract made with food-grade solvents | Chemical conversion of mitragynine into concentrated 7-OH or MP |
| Main alkaloid | Mitragynine, with the plant's natural balance of others | 7-OH or MP; little or no mitragynine |
| 7-OH content | Under 2% of total alkaloids | Majority of the product; often 10–45 mg per serving |
| Respiratory depression | Not observed with leaf or mitragynine (NIDA) | Observed in lab models (NIDA) |
| Federal status | Legal; studied by NIH as an addiction treatment | HHS/FDA recommended Schedule I (July 2025) |
| AKA position | Regulate under the KCPA | Remove from the market |
How to read the label
Natural kratom
- Front of the package says "Kratom" or "Mitragyna speciosa" and nothing else about alkaloids.
- Supplement Facts lists mitragynine (or "MIT") per serving, sometimes with other natural alkaloids such as paynantheine, speciociliatine or speciogynine.
- Any 7-hydroxymitragynine line shows non-detectable or under 2% of total alkaloids.
7-OH or pseudo product
- Front says "7-OH," "7-Hydroxy," "7-hydroxymitragynine," "7 OHMZ," "Ohmz," "Ohms," "7rx," "ON7," "Pseudo," or "Mitragynine pseudoindoxyl."
- Uses "Superior," "Advanced," or "Enhanced Kratom Alkaloids," or "Enhanced Proprietary Alkaloids."
- Facts panel lists only 7-hydroxymitragynine, e.g. "10 mg/serving; 20 mg/tablet," even if the ingredient line says "Mitragyna speciosa leaf extract."
- "Contains naturally occurring plant compounds from Mitragyna speciosa" on a 7-OH product is marketing, not a description of what is inside.
What to do
- Consumers: Buy from GMP Qualified Vendors and check the facts panel. If you find 7-OH products on a shelf, tell the retailer they are the subject of a federal Schedule I recommendation, and report the location to AKA.
- Retailers: Pull 7-OH and pseudo products now. In KCPA states, selling them already violates the 2 percent cap and the synthetic ban.
- Lawmakers: Use the KCPA or emergency scheduling to remove 7-OH, and leave natural leaf kratom regulated, not banned.