WASHINGTON — The Washington Poison Center is warning that a legal herbal supplement laced with kratom has caused at least one overdose in our state and was involved in the deaths of four people in Utah recently.
The supplement is called Cat’s Claw.
“Cat’s claw is an herbal supplement that comes from plants and is kind of a natural product,” explained poison control chief clinical officer Jimmy Leonard.
Leonard says cat’s claw pills are turning up that have been laced with a synthetic – and highly potent - form of another natural supplement, kratom, that has opioid properties.
“The danger to the consumer is, one, if you don’t know, if you’ve been buying normal, non-laced cat’s claw for a really long time, and then all of a sudden you say, you bought a product that has an opioid in it, and you’re not tolerant to it, it can make you stop breathing and die,” he said.
The Washington Poison Center offered the following explainer of what to look out for:
Cat’s claw (Uncaria tomentosa or Uncaria guianensis) is a legal herbal supplement marketed to manage symptoms of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer. On its own, authentic cat’s claw is not psychoactive and does not cause opioid overdose or withdrawal symptoms. However, recent investigations into products labeled as “Cat’s Claw” found undisclosed 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), MGM-15, mitragynine pseudoindoxyl (MGPI), and other potent compounds derived from kratom. These mislabeled products are sold in vape shops, gas stations, convenience stores, and online.
Earlier this month, the Utah Poison Control Center reported that the deaths of four people involved counterfeit cat’s claw.
Within the past two weeks, one Washington resident overdosed on it, but was revived with Naloxone.
Leonard says there may be more unreported cases.
He also suspects the kratom-tainted cat’s claw may be a way for the synthetic drug’s manufacturers to get around rules. Half a dozen cities in Washington have banned the sale of Kratom.
He says health inspectors have found counterfeit cat’s claw sold in convenience stores, vape shops and online.
“That doesn’t surprise me at all,” said naturopathic doctor Ciera Gaddis.
She spoke to KIRO 7 as she maneuvered down the natural supplement aisle at Katterman’s Pharmacy in Laurelhurst on Wednesday.
Gaddis recommends buying supplements from a pharmacy to ensure you’re getting what you paid for and a quality product. And she pointed to a small, circular USP label that stands for “United States Pharmacopeia.”
“This is a great indication that they’ve at least sent some of their product to a lab to be tested and vetted for purity, concentration, and contaminant testing,” she said.
As for those who are selling the counterfeit drug, Leonard points out that some of the chemicals in synthetic kratom are Schedule I controlled substances, so possessing, distributing, or selling them is a felony.
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