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| Mitragyna speciosa is barely known in the United
States, but one of the most interesting plants we have
ever found... |
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| Kratom grows in the lush rainforests in the South of
Thailand, and has the unique position of being banned in
the country it is indigenous to...true story... |
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Ketom/Kratom: How it is
Traditionally Used
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– By S.S. YOGA
Ketum (Kratom)
belongs to the same family as the coffee plant. It grows best in swampy
areas and there are two varieties found in Malaysia – one with a red
midrib and the other with a white one (which apparently has stronger
effect).
The plant can reach a height of 15m with a spread of
5m and the leaves are dark glossy green in colour. The flowers are small
and yellow and look like a bishop's mitre (which gave rise to its
scientific name Mitragyna).
Long-term users of ketum apparently become thin and
their skin darkens, particularly on the cheeks. Traditionally villagers
in the north and east of the country and Southern Thailand use it to
withstand the long hours toiling in the sun working in rice fields.
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Prof Ikram Said
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There are quite a few ways to consume ketum. One way is
to pluck the leaves and dry them in the sun. They are then crushed and
ground into powder. A teaspoonful of powder is mixed with water and
drunk. The powder can also be placed on the tongue for the “desired”
effect.
Another not so palatable-sounding process is mixing it
with dried cow dung and tobacco, rolling it into a cigarette and smoking
it. The leaves can also be mixed with dried coconut, ginger, onions,
nutmeg and lime and rolled with daun kaduk (wild pepper leaf) and
chewed like daun sirih (beetle nut leaves).
There’s also the popular method of boiling the leaves
in a container of water, sieving the residue and rolling them into small
balls to be dried and smoked later.
Related story:
Drug in Demand |
Credits
The Star Online: Lifestyles
Specific to Mitragyna speciosa
(Kratom):
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