American Kratom Association Review – What Role Do They Play?

Since its formation in 2014 and the official launch in 2015, the American Kratom Association has pioneered many breakthroughs regarding Kratom use. From protecting the rights of all Americans to championing the use of the herbal drug for well-being and improved health, AKA has been the center stage of Kratom controversy from the beginning. For instance, when the FDA suggested to the DEA for Kratom to classify as an illegal substance in 2015 AKA mobilized the signing of petitions which saw the realization of 100,000 signatures in a week.
Unfortunately, over time the spread of unreliable information both scientific and anecdotal has made it hard for the representatives and association to keep tabs on regulation parameters. That said, what exactly does the American Kratom association do? What significant changes have they imposed in the last few years and what is in store for the Association?

The American Kratom Association: What Role do they play?

AKA plays a significant role now more than ever. Initially, the Association was formed to organize responsible users of Kratom and update them on matters concerning the herbal drug. They support the scientific research on Kratom and educate the regulators.

Informing the Public

• Mostly, the FDA has literally over a thousand report regarding what companies and brands can and cannot do with their products. That’s not the point of misunderstanding, no they are only doing their job to protect Americans. However, one of the regulations on what companies can or cannot do is called “claiming.” This informs the companies and business owners evaluate what they can say or withhold from their customers especially when marketing their brands.
• Simply put, the FDA does not allow companies to imply that Kratom can be used to treat, mitigate, diagnose or prevent certain abnormalities in the human body. For instance, you already know that Kratom can help reduce anxiety, stress, and boost energy levels, Kratom brands and companies can not perpetuate this kind of information. That’s where AKA comes in.

Forums

• Furthermore, AKA offers a platform where users can discuss their experience and other related issues. On the American Kratom Association forum, you can sign up or follow them on their active Facebook page and voice your claims to a diverse crowd.
• The forum has helped mitigate the Kratom community especially during periods of disarray, for example, during the legality issue this year that had people on edge. It has managed to stay relevant, supportive, and intact despite the unrelenting backlash from big corporations.

Unifying the Kratom users

• It’s important to remember that the fight against Kratom is not just against one faction, it’s against multiple corporations with power and influence. It would be nearly impossible to go up against these corporations without collective representatives such as AKA. We are not implying that these companies control the decisions let alone the decision-making process but, what’s clear is that the American Kratom Association alongside other Kratom representatives has been closely monitoring their activities and reporting back to the Kratom users.
• For instance, Scott Gottlieb is known for saying Kratom is a dangerous substance and is the cause of many deaths. Moreover, when a patent by Alexander Kariman was filled terming Kratom “…compound in some subjects reduces acute pain linked with cancer treatment and other medical procedures….treatment to several diseases and disorders”. It’s suspicious how close the two events’ timeline was close.
• This only goes to show FDA closely monitors aspects of the Kratom market and respectable vendors. Waiting to cease the first chance they get to shut everything down. Luckily, associations and representative such as AKA are always on guard to counter such claims.

Who are against AKA up ?

• In a way, it almost seems like the FDA wants to demonize Kratom to the DEA and the rest of the country. The AKA acts like a filter sieving all the information coming from these corporations. Unfortunately, when incorrect information is release to the good; yet ignorant people, who have never heard of the powder. Undoing the damage and criticism is hard. The FDA is known to have had their facts wrong on almost every occasion.
• The FDA cited 44 deaths in documentation in the effort to persuade the DEA to categorize Kratom of the Federal Government class 1 list of substances. Later the documentation was disclosed by the American Kratom Association to be rigged with omission and errors on the part of the FDA. The American Kratom Association termed this as a deliberate intent to demonize the drug.
• On the detailed white paper released in August 2018, the AKA attorneys and scientists went up against the FDA claiming they had misled the DEA, National Institute of Drug abuse, and the Center for Disease control with inaccurate, incomplete, distorted, and extrapolated information. The reported adverse deaths by the FDA sue to Kratom use were meant to propagate the unwarranted regulatory and legislative restrictions on Kratom at the local, state, and federal government levels.

Some of the unsubstantiated facts noted by AKA include:

• Failure to provide adequate account reported nine deaths in Sweden supposedly published in the Journal of Analytical Toxicology.
• Two deaths recorded in the documented were similar.
• Some of the deaths reported were as a result of heroin, acetaminophen, and other cocktails or drugs.
• The FDA cited that U-47700(PINK) was the main cause of death regardless of it being listed as the sixth substance in the report.
• FDA imposed suicides; a homicide, cardiac while swimming, deep vein thrombosis, and fall from a window to Kratom.

Conclusion

So what can you do to help representatives like the American Kratom Association stop the ever impending threat on Kratom Ban? While you might feel like there is little you can do, there are many people out there who have the drive and passion to keep the Kratom experience alive. It’s important to have an outlet and communicate with other users when it comes to this fight. As evidenced by the white paper the FDA has a hidden agenda, perhaps the Big Brother wants a cut of the money? Engage your friends and family in signing the petition issued by the American Kratom Association. By staying active and dedicated to this fight the AKA’s trajectory seems promising.