Addiction treatment centers across the country say more patients are arriving dependent on kratom products, especially concentrated 7-OH, and that their withdrawal is growing more severe. At the telehealth addiction clinic Boulder Care, people reporting kratom use made up 3% of new patients in September 2025, 8% in July 2026, and 14% in August, STAT reported on Monday. These figures come from clinics, not national surveillance data.
For families, the change is concrete. A product bought at a gas station counter for energy or pain relief can lead to withdrawal that some clinicians now manage with the same tools used for opioid withdrawal. Many patients, providers say, did not understand what they were taking.
