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KAVA PRODUCT ALERT Feel Free "Wellness Tonic" - Botanic Tonics

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
Well, kava lovers, I think we've got a contender for the Watchdog list.

Summary: "Wellness Tonic" shot sold by Botanic Tonics as "A Euphoric Drink made with Kava". It is an extract shot made with both kava extract and K@ (Mitragyna speciosa) extract. Product page mentions the mixture with K@ a total of one time. Actual contents are printed on the bottle.

Manufacturer: Botanictonics.com
Product: Feel Free Wellness Tonic
Website Registered: 03/24/2020

IF YOU FEEL AS THOUGH YOU'VE BEEN HARMED BY THIS PRODUCT PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINK BELOW, AND CLICK "CONSUMER PATIENT" TO FILL OUT A REPORT TO THE FDA.

--- https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/ ---​

Product Page: https://botanictonics.com/products/feel-free-wellness-tonic
Youtube Description:
Sales Text:
A Euphoric Drink Made with Kava
Our feel good wellness tonic is a kava drink made with kava kava and other ancient plants from the South Pacific and Southeast Asia, where they’ve been used socially and in wellness for centuries.

An extremely euphoric drink that is also non-alcoholic, Feel Free Wellness Tonic is known to provide a ton of benefits highlighted below.

Benefits of Our Non-Alcoholic Kava Drink
feel free is a Botanic Tonics proprietary blend of euphoric bliss!

- Enjoy as a kava based herbal tonic during the day

- Enjoy as a non-alcoholic drink substitute to help with anxiety

- Enjoy as a euphoric drink when hanging out with friends

Description: This is a product calling itself a "wellness tonic" which contains both kava, and K@ with absolutely no mention of K@ on thier product advertising and one instance buried deep in their "FAQ" page. The only time you're given upfront information that this product contains Mitragyna speciosa is on the bottle itself after purchase, as per the above youtube video.

My problem with it: This type of product marketing is absolutely detrimental to the sustainable future of kava. Mixing it with addictive adulterants with ONE hidden indication on thier website is at best dishonest, and in reality it's a lie attempting to pick up customers at the expense of ignorance. Personally it's a slap in the face. Kava is not addictive, and not harmful. They're making a product that violates both of these positive attributes that kava embodies.

K@: The FDA classified adulterant, Mitragyna speciosa, or "K@", is an addictive opioid herb with no relation to kava. It is not classified as a dietary supplement in any fashion. Some people suffering from opioid misuse disorder have begun using this herb to reduce withdrawal symptoms related to prescription pain relievers and street opioids. Others have erroneously sought this herb to ease anxiety and depression. For personal accounts of addiction and habituation see https://www.reddit.com/r/quittingkratom/. Many accounts of medication interactions with this drug exist in literature. K@ has an extensive ability to alter the pharmacokinetic profiles of many pharmaceutical drugs.

Conclusion: I say all of this to underscore that this combination isn't just a "natural feel good shot". It could lead to serious interactions with other medications that kava drinkers routinely take, as well as exposing the consumer to additional risks of addiction and habituation. This product takes the safety profile and long traditional history of kava, and flushes it down the toilet with one dishonest swoop.


K@ Information Sources:

Abdullah, Haq, and Lamfers. 2019. “Cardiac Arrest in a Young Healthy Male Patient Secondary to K@ Ingestion: Is This’ Legal High'substance More Dangerous than Initially Thought?” BMJ Case Reports CP. https://casereports.bmj.com/content/12/7/e229778.abstract.

Castillo, Austin, J. Drew Payne, and Kenneth Nugent. 2017. “Posterior Reversible Leukoencephalopathy Syndrome after K@ Ingestion.” Proceedings 30 (3): 355–57. https://doi.org/10.1080/08998280.2017.11929647.

Cutlip, Hunter A., Ella Bushman, Lisa Thottumari, Raja Mogallapu, and Michael Ang-Rabanes. 2021. “A Case Report of K@-Induced Psychosis.” Cureus 13 (6): e16073. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.16073.

Fernandes, Christopher T., Umair Iqbal, Sean P. Tighe, and Aijaz Ahmed. 2019. “K@-Induced Cholestatic Liver Injury and Its Conservative Management.” Journal of Investigative Medicine High Impact Case Reports 7 (January): 2324709619836138. https://doi.org/10.1177/2324709619836138.

Gandhi, Darshan, Kriti Ahuja, Alexis Quade, Kenneth P. Batts, and Love Patel. 2020. “K@ Induced Severe Cholestatic Liver Injury Histologically Mimicking Primary Biliary Cholangitis: A Case Report.” World Journal of Hepatology 12 (10): 863–69. https://doi.org/10.4254/wjh.v12.i10.863.

Hofmeister, M. 2022. “K@ Consumption Can Be Addictive and Have Adverse Health Effects.” Novelty in Clinical Medicine. https://www.nclinmed.com/article_154679.html.

Kerrigan, Sarah, and Stephanie Basiliere. 2022. “K@: A Systematic Review of Toxicological Issues.” WIREs Forensic Science 4 (1). https://doi.org/10.1002/wfs2.1420.

Khan, Muhammad Zarrar, Mohannad Abou Saleh, Motasem Alkhayyat, Daniel E. Roberts, and Christina C. Lindenmeyer. 2021. “Multiorgan Dysfunction Related to K@ Ingestion.” ACG Case Reports Journal 8 (8): e00647. https://doi.org/10.14309/crj.0000000000000647.

LeSaint, Kathy T., Shan Yin, Abhisheak Sharma, Bonnie A. Avery, Christopher R. McCurdy, and Javier C. Waksman. 2022. “Acute Renal Insufficiency Associated With Consumption of Hydrocodone- and Morphine-Adulterated K@ (Mitragyna Speciosa).” The Journal of Emergency Medicine, August. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jemermed.2022.02.004.

O’Malley, Patricia Anne. 2018. “Think K@ Is a Safe Opioid Substitute? Think Again!: History, Evidence, and Possible Future for Mitragyna Speciosa.” Clinical Nurse Specialist CNS 32 (5): 227–30. https://doi.org/10.1097/NUR.0000000000000392.

Prozialeck, Walter, Alexandra Fowler, and Joshua Edwards. 2022. “Public Health Implications and Possible Sources of Lead (Pb) as a Contaminant of Poorly Regulated K@ Products in the United States.” Toxics 10 (7). https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics10070398.

Sekar, Arjun, Shrey Velani, Samantha Katzman, Meghan O’Donnell, and Kyle S. Conway. 2022. “Suspected Fanconi Syndrome from Cadmium Toxicity Exacerbated by Heavy K@ Use. A Rare Occurrence.” Clinical Toxicology 60 (7): 888–89. https://doi.org/10.1080/15563650.2022.2046774.
 
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Groggy

Kava aficionado
Admin
Snake oil, anytime I hear "Tonic" it reminds me of tonic from the 20's and 30's when it was a free for all. Good catch but (hopefully) most people know that there are no shortcuts with kava short of adding some palatable flavors to make it go down easier.
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
Snake oil, anytime I hear "Tonic" it reminds me of tonic from the 20's and 30's when it was a free for all. Good catch but (hopefully) most people know that there are no shortcuts with kava short of adding some palatable flavors to make it go down easier.
^^
100%.

My fear, and it's already been confirmed, is that an unassuming newbie picks this up thinking it's kava. We had a user ask specifically this on reddit, and it's what prompted me to issue this warning.
 

Zaphod

Kava Lover
Holy hell who comes up with this shit? Curious, outside of our moral outrage and some strongly worded emails is there anything we can do to foil this type of deceptive marketing?
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
Holy hell who comes up with this shit? Curious, outside of our moral outrage and some strongly worded emails is there anything we can do to foil this type of deceptive marketing?
Well, the reason I suspect that we see no mention of K@ in this advertisement is that vendors have caught on that the word draws negative attention. Instead of seeing this as a sign of troubles to come, they've decided to just not say the word, and call it "K-tea" or just "botanical tea" while some just don't say anything at all about the ingredients as our nice example here shows. My sincerest respects to those bars with integrity enough to call it what it is, and give consumers an actual choice.


It's just a matter of time until the entire show comes to a screeching halt from the number of bad actors.

Edit: Example:
ktea.jpg


Edit 2:

First thread I pulled from r/quittingkratom
quittingkrat.png


Edit 3: And Another one.
QUITTINGKRAT02.png
 
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Aceofwands9

Kava Enthusiast
What worries me about shady herbal products like this is if they're being sketchy on the surface, it makes me really worried about the quality of the botanicals in the product. Folks should be able to make their own decisions about what's going in their bodies and should be assured that it is of a reasonably clean and safe quality.
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
What worries me about shady herbal products like this is if they're being sketchy on the surface, it makes me really worried about the quality of the botanicals in the product. Folks should be able to make their own decisions about what's going in their bodies and should be assured that it is of a reasonably clean and safe quality.
Right. That's just another layer of this putrid onion. Who knows what they're actually using for botanical extracts. If you go to the website and sort by lowest rating on their reviews you can see where one bottle causes some to vomit. I'm honestly surprised they allowed that review to stay.
 

Skinskava

70-80 g to 1 Liter-Day Dreamer- My Roots Run Deep-
In boutique stores all across the affluent Los Angeles and surrounding areas in smoothie health stores. Noticed while traveling zero transparency but popular
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
In boutique stores all across the affluent Los Angeles and surrounding areas in smoothie health stores. Noticed while traveling zero transparency but popular
That's rather unfortunate. Of course it's popular it's an opiate, lol.
 

kavakarma

Kava Enthusiast
Wow! I am surprised any time a company sells a product without its ingredients being front and center. I'll send them an email, asking what method of brewing they use for their kava, as well as asking them to list the full ingredients as well as mitragyna speciosa leaf 3500mg/bottle on the product description page. Some of the reviews read as, "Happy to have found a natural, drug-free drink to unwind at the end of the..." K@ is a drug, my peers agree. If you want to market it to K@ users, proceed with due caution.

Inform yourself of the risks of combining K@ with any other substance, so that as a company you may make the morally responsible decision to inform your customers what they are getting into. One review says "2 or 3 per day gives me the most benefits." That's 7 to 10.5g K@ leaf, enough daily to get yout body used to it and then what when you stop?

I respect the choice to drink K@, I think it should be an educated choice. Knowing the facts about how it interacts with liver enzymes that other drugs and herbal remedies metabolise through as well as mentioning the possibility or likelihood of withdrawal are considerations I sincerely wish this company follow.

One of the first warnings I noticed was in the product description, "extremely euphoric". Anything extremely euphoric sounds like it has caveats attached.

Thank you for sharing this @Kapmcrunk , I wonder if this is all honest naieve work or if there is a profit driven motive for leaving out the ingredients or the FDA legal disclaimers about K@ which warn individuals under 18, drivers, pregnant or breastfeeding women, dangers of combinations with alcohol or prescription drugs, or the fact that kava carries through to breast milk and may cause drowsiness as well.
 

Skinskava

70-80 g to 1 Liter-Day Dreamer- My Roots Run Deep-
That's rather unfortunate. Of course it's popular it's an opiate, lol.
I didnt mean it like that Kapn. I meant it’s popular for like ppl who dont know what theyre getting. Like they think its a relaxing herbal drink but they arent aware whats in it. The ingredients on back dont mention the herbs only the flavoring and all that. Its downright screwed up and is marketed towards a uninformed consumer i suppose
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
I didnt mean it like that Kapn. I meant it’s popular for like ppl who dont know what theyre getting. Like they think its a relaxing herbal drink but they arent aware whats in it. The ingredients on back dont mention the herbs only the flavoring and all that. Its downright screwed up and is marketed towards a uninformed consumer i suppose
Sorry man. That may have come off strange. I didn't mean to insinuate you didn't know what you're talking about there. Looking back at my comment, it does sound pretty uppity. Sorry about that!

In regards to the vendors selling things like this. It seems nobody is toeing the line anymore, they're leroy jenkensing the shit out of it. They figure it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission.
 

Cuzzie

Kava Enthusiast
Do they actually acknowledge the real ingredients in the podcast? (I'd listen now, but my PC at work has no speakers)
I don’t want to misspeak but from what I recall, I think he said 4 parts kava to 1 part K@. They talk a lot about K@ and some of the risks with different methods. He also said his personal number is listed on every bottle and welcomes calls, so if this is still a contentious issue, maybe he can be interviewed by the kava community? I personally have no opinion about this, just wanted to add to this thread. I think the interview comes across as very credible though for what it’s worth.
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
I don’t want to misspeak but from what I recall, I think he said 4 parts kava to 1 part K@. They talk a lot about K@ and some of the risks with different methods. He also said his personal number is listed on every bottle and welcomes calls, so if this is still a contentious issue, maybe he can be interviewed by the kava community? I personally have no opinion about this, just wanted to add to this thread. I think the interview comes across as very credible though for what it’s worth.
Excellent. Thank you. That's moving in the right direction. If only they would mark the contents of their products on their promotional adds I wouldn't have my britches so much in a wad ;)
 

Cuzzie

Kava Enthusiast
Excellent. Thank you. That's moving in the right direction. If only they would mark the contents of their products on their promotional adds I wouldn't have my britches so much in a wad ;)
You’re welcome. Curious to hear what others think if they listen.
 
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