Washington, D.C.

Kratom’s U.S. Rise Puts Regulators on Edge After Student Deaths

Kratom, a plant-derived substance sold in the United States for roughly a decade, is drawing fresh scrutiny after investigators linked it to the deaths of two college students. Often marketed as a natural remedy, the product has also been dubbed “gas station heroin” by critics alarmed at its opioid-like effects and uneven regulation. The case is intensifying debate in Washington over consumer safety, drug enforcement and how to classify a substance that sits uneasily between supplement and narcotic.