Indigenous to Southeast Asia, kratom is a tropical evergreen tree. For centuries, people have been using the leaves of the kratom tree as a natural remedy for pain relief, increased energy, anxiety reduction, and more. Recently, kratom has become increasingly popular in the West as an alternative medicine and recreational substance.
What are kratom extracts?
Kratom extracts are made by boiling down kratom leaf powder into a thick resin or semi-solid extract. This process removes the plant matter and leaves behind a product with a higher concentration of active alkaloids.
- 15x, 25x, 50x – This refers to the amount of raw kratom leaf that was boiled down to make 1 gram of extract. For example, a 25x extract means 25 grams of leaves were concentrated into 1 gram of extract.
- UEI (Ultra Enhanced Indo) – A proprietary enhanced kratom extract. It is made by combining purified alkaloids with a concentrated kratom extract. UEI is designed to have higher alkaloid content than conventional extracts.
- FST (Full Spectrum Tincture) – An extract made through a combination of alcohol and water extraction. It contains the full spectrum of alkaloids found in kratom.
No matter the type, kratom extracts contain the plant’s active compounds in a very concentrated form.
How to take kratom extracts?
When buy kratom extracts for the first time, it is extremely important to start with a very small dose. Extracts 5-15x more potent than regular kratom powder. Even doses as small as 1 gram are very strong for someone with no tolerance.
- Start with no more than 0.5 grams your first time using a new extract. This is about half the size of a standard “00” capsule.
- Wait 45 minutes to 1 hour to evaluate the effects before considering taking more. The peak effects of an extract dose take 90 minutes to fully develop.
- Increase your dosage by increments of 0.25-0.5 grams each time until desired effects are reached.
- Be patient and do not reduce too quickly. Extracts take a while to fully kick in.
- Stay under 2 grams for your first few uses until you know how you react. Even this supposedly moderate dose may be too much for some users.
- Use a precision scale to measure your dose in fractions of a gram. Do not eyeball an extract dose!
Always use caution and start low with any new extract. Once you have a tolerance and know how a certain product affects you, you gradually increase your dosage further. However, less is more when just starting.
Benefits of taking kratom extracts
Kratom extracts offer some advantages over regular dried leaf powder:
- More convenient preparation – Extracts be weighed and swallowed without making tea.
- Higher alkaloid concentration – You may find extracts to be more potent and effective, especially for pain relief or anxiety.
- Can be cheaper for some extracts – Since you need less material to make a dose, the cost per use potentially be lower.
For these reasons, kratom extracts are usually best reserved for experienced users who have already developed a tolerance for regular leaves. They are risky for new users who may find them uncomfortably strong.
