Kratom and Alcohol: Is it safe to mix the two?

Find yourself wondering: Is it safe to mix kratom and alcohol?

Well, you’re not alone. Kratom is an herbal supplement originating from Asia, and is growing in popularity exponentially over the last few years. Kratom is a natural remedy for pain, anxiety, and can be used to ease the strain associated with many other ailments as well. So, is it safe to mix with alcohol?

Whether you are new to kratom, or a seasoned user of the herb, here is a guide regarding the do’s and don’ts when it comes to consuming alcohol and kratom.

Mixing Alcohol and Kratom

The trend of using kratom recreationally has increased significantly, raising questions and concerns regarding whether it’s safe to combine kratom with other substances. One substance in particular has been igniting heated discussions all over the web – alcohol.

Most of these discussions revolve around the interest of what the effects would be if an individual mixed kratom with alcohol. However, some want to know if it’s a safe combination.

We all know that it’s unsafe to mix alcohol with opioid drugs, such as hydrocodone or oxycontin, but there is currently no evidence showing that kratom would cause any serious complications if mixed with alcohol.

That said, one should still be cautious when it comes to combining these two substances. Here are the two reasons why:

• Certain strains of kratom can be sedating
• Alcohol is known as a depressant

Due to the fact that kratom is still a fairly new herbal trend in America, there is no solid research that can be found around the combination of kratom and alcohol. The only real information available is through user experiences across various forums. These user experiences provide detailed (experience based) opinions on the topic of alcohol with kratom.

User Experiences with Kratom and Alcohol

Browsing through online forums, it’s hard not to notice how mixed the user reviews are. The effects of mixing kratom and alcohol vary significantly from one person to another.

You have people from all walks of life, taking different doses of kratom and drinking different amounts of alcohol with it. You have the users who blame alcohol for any bad effects they experienced. On the other hand, you have the users who enjoyed the combination of substances and found no problem with combining the two. Then, you have the “official” forums, who have declared that this combination is damaging to your health and can be risky.

Since there is no “fixed” recipe when it comes to blending kratom and alcohol, the reactions are inconsistent, with some users endorsing it while others don’t.

Kratom and Alcohol Mixed at Low Doses

According to the user experiences we gathered, a low dose of both these substances can provide mood enhancing effects, stimulation, and generally an all around positive experience. When the users drank alcohol after a kratom dose, they reported having a more profound, “deeper” sense of well-being. Mild feelings of relaxation were also noted. Alcohol seems to potentiate kratom’s impact, without causing any negative or adverse effects.

After extensive research, we found no harmful effects reported by users who mixed kratom and alcohol at a low dose.

Kratom and Alcohol Mixed at Moderate Doses

While scrolling through forums about users who mixed kratom and alcohol at moderate doses, we came to realize that there are two outcomes with this combination:

1. Amazing and overall positive experience among users
2. Awful and overall negative experience among users

There are a few negative side effects that a handful of users expressed, including: vomiting, nausea, dizziness, stomach ache, and lethargy.

Just as alcohol can have negative side effects when used in excess, so can kratom. Certain kratom strains are known to be significantly more potent compared to others. With that in mind, one of the most commonly reported side effects were mild nausea, although lethargy was a close second. The sedating strains of kratom (most red vein kratom strains) tend to trigger these negative effects.

Kratom and Alcohol Mixed at High Doses

As I’m sure you can imaging, the user reviews around mixing high doses of kratom and alcohol were almost entirely negative.

When a person combines two similarly potent substances, both in high doses, they’re likely to experience harmful effects. The main side effects mentioned were severe nausea, feeling faint, headaches and “the spins”. These effects are awfully similar to the feeling of overdosing, which can be very unpleasant.

Users reported feeling terribly hungover the next day. The reason for this is due to the ingredient mixture. As previously mentioned, it was very rare to find a user who reported having a positive experience after taking both substances at high doses.

The good majority of Reddit users expanded on the dangers of this combination at a high dose. Therefore, we strongly advise against it.

So, what are the dangers of mixing kratom and alcohol?

There is insufficient conclusive evidence regarding the dangers of mixing these two equally potent substances. However, by reviewing the properties of both substances individually, users can find useful information on the possible risks of taking them together in large amounts.

We will start with alcohol. Due to the fact that alcohol is a depressant, it blocks the functions of the central nervous system. It does so by blocking signals from the nerve receptors to the brain. When a person drinks alcohol, particularly in large amounts, their senses, movements, and perceptions are distorted.

Kratom can act as both a sedative and a stimulant. Kratom consumers often take the herb supplement for chronic pain, as it has the ability to provide mild to moderate pain relief. Kratom does not trigger the same opioid receptors as pharmaceutical opioids. However, many users claim to feel similar effects with the use of kratom, as they do when they consume prescription painkillers and experience their opioid receptors igniting. So, one can conclude that combining a depressant with a stimulant could be risky.

One drink a day for women and up to two drinks a day for men, is considered a moderate level of alcohol consumption based on Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Taking kratom with alcohol can intensify the effects. This is a problem, because often it leads to a much deeper, longer-lasting result.

Withdrawal Symptoms of Mixing Kratom and Alcohol

As for potential withdrawal symptoms of combining these two substances, there is not significant research to support much of a certain outcome.

That said, the withdrawal symptoms of alcohol itself can be incredibly severe. Thus, mixing kratom with alcohol on a regular basis can cause some of the negative withdrawal symptoms of alcohol to appear. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms can occur anywhere from two hours to 5 days or more, after one stops drinking. Headaches, nausea, anxiety attacks, tremors, hallucinations and seizures are all withdrawal symptoms of heavy alcohol drinking.

Kratom Tea with Alcohol

Kratom tincture is a form of alcoholic kratom, which is taken in a liquid form.

It is important to understand that combining kratom tea with alcohol may not be a good idea. Many claim that it is more difficult to determine exactly how much of each substance you are consuming when kratom tea is used in combination with alcohol.

What are the various types of Kratom Products available?

This herbal supplement can be dosed in a variety of ways, as there are many different types of kratom products available today.

Here is a list of some common Kratom Products:

• Kratom powder
• Kratom powder capsules
• Kratom extract (both in capsule form and liquid form)
• Kratom tincture
• Liquid kratom
• Kratom e-vape liquid

Maeng Da is the most commonly consumed strain of kratom, as it contains a higher number of alkaloids compared to other strains. That said, many consumers of this herbal supplement also enjoy the sedating properties of Bali, the stimulating effects of White Vein, and Red Vein Thai – which has fewer reported negative side effects.

There are no reported overdoses of kratom to this day.