The Food and Drug Administration issued a public health advisory warning consumers to stay away from the herbal supplement kratom, as regulators are aware of 36 deaths linked to products containing the substance. Kratom is an ingredient known to be used in some products recently marketed as treatments for anxiety, depression, pain, and opioid withdrawal. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said that kratom is not approved by the FDA for any use, and that there is no “reliable evidence” to support the claim that kratom is a safe treatment for opioid abuse or addiction. Gottlieb also said that the substance can have similar effects as opioids, “and carries similar risks of abuse, addiction and, in some cases, death.”

Read the statement from the FDA on their website.