Apart from baptising and categorising the plant according to Western taxonomic practice, Korthals also noted and reported some of its traditional medicinal applications and accompanying psychoactive effects, as exhibited fervently by numerous Southeast Asian people. Yet only after repeated reconsideration and reclassification did Kratom receive its official and final classification in 1859, Mitragyna speciosa, from British botanist & surgeon, George Darby Haviland.
Since then, therapeutic use and recreational consumption of Kratom has become registered across the whole span of Southeast Asia, from Myanmar to Papua New Guinea. For centuries, indigenous laborers have customarily consumed the potent green leaves of this tree to maintain their endurance, enhance productivity, ease the workload and relax & relieve afterwards. Its medicinal features also became reported in China, India & Africa, and by means of old trade routes, Kratom slowly made its way into Europe. Due to increasing appeal and public attention, both as a herbal medicine and as a recreational psychoactive, it gained popularity among a broader part of Western civilisation, only quite recently.
Mitragyna speciosa may have a much older ethnobotanic history, perhaps even dating back thousands of years, but we can only trace truly verifiable signs of its usage & consumption back to the 17th century. The further back we delve, the more unreliable the reports & records become, mainly due to causes of a repressive nature. The Thai government, for instance, adhering to the well known, age-old, political adage “Just Say No”, made it illegal in 1943. They preferred to see people use and, more easily so, become addicted to Opium, in order to receive ample amounts of tax money. However, during the past decade, Thai authorities started taking steps to lift the ban on Kratom and legalise its consumption.
Historically, Kratom consumers describe stimulative & euphoric effects, not unlike Coca and Qat, and also tranquilizing & analgesic effects, similar to Opium. As much as this may seem paradoxical, many reports make it clear that a distinct shift in effect takes place, from the stimulating to the sedating, when consuming an increasing amount of whole, ground or powdered leaves, or tea or extract of the leaves. The distinct diversity of effects also depends on the typical strain of choice.
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