Plants of the Gods: S7E2. The Ethnobotany of Kratom with Dr. Chris McCurdy

The tropical Asian tree kratom – a member of the same botanical family that has given us both coffee and quinine – is showing great potential for successfully treating a variety of serious afflictions, from stress to opioid withdrawal. Ironically – depending on dosage – it can act either as a stimulant or a sedative. The episode features an insightful interview with Dr. Christopher McCurdy, the leading authority on this extraordinary plant of the gods. Show notes: "About Christopher R McCurdy." University of Florida College of Pharmacy , pharmacy.ufl.edu/profile/mccurdy-christopher/ . Accessed 17 June 2025. Grundmann, Oliver, et al. "Not All Kratom Is Equal: The Important Distinction between Native Leaf and Extract Products - Grundmann - 2024 - Addiction - Wiley Online Library." Wiley Online Library , 9 Oct. 2023, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.16366. Smith, Kirsten E., et al. "The Rise of Novel, Semi-Synthetic 7-Hydroxymitragynine Products." Wiley Online Library , 3 Dec. 2024, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.16728. Talesnik, Dana. "McCurdy Studies Whether Kratom Can Reduce Opioid Withdrawal, Ease Pain." National Institutes of Health , U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 23 June 2022, nihrecord.nih.gov/2022/06/24/mccurdy-studies-whether-kratom-can-reduce-opioid-withdrawal-ease-pain.

You can listen to Plants of the Gods: S7E2. The Ethnobotany of Kratom with Dr. Chris McCurdy online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Plants of the Gods: S7E2. The Ethnobotany of Kratom with Dr. Chris McCurdy is an episode from Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation podcast by Mark Plotkin.

This episode is 34:02 long.

This episode was published on Jun 18, 2025.

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