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There's a retail shop in SF devoted to this vaguely legal drug. So I tried it.
Zack Ruskin
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This picture taken Dec. 25, 2018, shows Indonesian kratom grower Gusti Prabu tending to his plants at a farm in Pontianak, West Kalimantan.Louis Anderson/AFP via Getty Images
Depending on who you ask, kratom is either a stimulant or a sedative.
In Thailand, day laborers have traditionally chewed the leaves of the kratom tree to boost energy and soothe muscle aches. Here in the U.S., powdered forms of the product are used to make an earthy tea used to treat pain, depression, anxiety and addiction.