Latest news with #StopGasStationHeroin
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Health
- Associated Press
New Study Raises Red Flags About Ingredients Found in Gas Station Heroin
Research conducted on dogs shows serious adverse effects at doses far lower than commonly sold amounts The Stop Gas Station Heroin coalition is sounding the alarm after reviewing a new animal study commissioned by CBD American Shaman, a Missouri-based company that sells '7' products in stores across the country. The study, which tested the effects of increasing doses of two lab-made substances — '7' (7-hydroxymitragynine) and 'Pseudo' (mitragynine pseudoindoxyl) — was funded to support the company's bid for FDA drug approval. But the research methods and results raise serious red flags for consumers of Gas Station Heroin. First, a clear conflict of interest occurred in conducting this study: CBD American Shaman has been illegally selling 7 products as dietary supplements since 2022, and the research was released by Holistic Alternative Recovery Trust (HART), a group with a financial stake in 7 and Pseudo products. Second, the study suggests these drugs may be far more dangerous than their labels imply: CBD American Shaman tells consumers that 7.5 milligrams, or half a tablet, is a safe serving. But based on the study's own data, that amount may be more than 25 times higher than what would be considered safe for human consumption. Using standard FDA methods to translate the effects seen in dogs to humans, Stop Gas Station Heroin estimates that just 0.3 milligrams could cross the threshold for risk. Yet many consumers of these products are unknowingly ingesting significantly greater amounts. Moreover, the study points to clear risks of addiction and dependency with misuse. 'These are not natural products. They are chemically altered, unapproved pharmaceutical drugs being marketed as herbal remedies,' said Matthew Lowe, Executive Director of Stop Gas Station Heroin. 'You can't just slap a 'dietary supplement' label on a drug and skip the safety trials.' CBD American Shaman and other purveyors of Gas Station Heroin have marketed 7 and Pseudo products as supplements formulated to cure, treat, and mitigate disease — namely, chronic pain and opioid use disorder — even though the products have never been approved by the FDA for any medical use. If companies like CBD American Shaman want to sell these substances legally, they must demonstrate the drugs' safety and effectiveness through a rigorous series of clinical trials and submit the results to the FDA as part of the New Drug Approval process. Until then, Stop Gas Station Heroin is calling for the immediate removal of these synthetic street drugs from store shelves. About Stop Gas Station Heroin Stop Gas Station Heroin is a national coalition that aims to educate consumers about harmful synthetic drugs and advocate for smart regulation that distinguishes between legitimate, natural botanicals and dangerous, synthetic drugs, combined with enforcement of current federal laws around unapproved drugs. To learn more, navigate to Media Contact Colby Wilson [email protected] ### SOURCE: Stop Gas Station Heroin Copyright 2025 EZ Newswire
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Health
- Associated Press
Stop Gas Station Heroin Coalition Commends FDA Crackdown on Illegal Drug '7'
Agency enforcement targets lab-made analogs, protecting consumers from unapproved new drugs The Stop Gas Station Heroin coalition today commended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for issuing warning letters to companies marketing '7" — a dangerous semi-synthetic alkaloid often disguised as a natural dietary supplement. This action marks a critical step toward curbing the spread of " Gas Station Heroin " — a term used to describe a range of often imported lab-made substances that include tianeptine, nitrous oxide, semi-synthetic and synthetic alkaloid products, and intoxicating hemp products. 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) is only naturally present in trace amounts in dried kratom leaves. Bad actors synthetically mass produce high-concentration, ultra-potent 7-OH isolates in tablets, capsules, powders, and gummies. These chemically manipulated products are misleadingly marketed as natural dietary supplements or food. In reality, they act like prescription opioids and not botanicals, posing serious health risks such as respiratory depression, addiction, and overdose. The FDA's warning letters underscore what scientists and public health experts have long known: Gas Station Heroin products are not supplements. They are unapproved, mislabeled street drugs designed to mimic the effects of opioids and other narcotics. As the FDA notes, Gas Station Heroin products are often aggressively advertised online and in retail locations with deceptive claims about their safety and effectiveness, particularly to individuals seeking to get high or prescription alternatives for pain relief, anxiety, or opioid withdrawal. Stop Gas Station Heroin applauds the FDA for using its enforcement authority to hold these illicit companies accountable and to protect American consumers from the growing threat posed by synthetic drugs. About Stop Gas Station Heroin Stop Gas Station Heroin is a national coalition that aims to educate consumers about harmful synthetic drugs and advocate for smart regulation that distinguishes between legitimate, natural botanicals and dangerous, synthetic drugs, combined with enforcement of current federal laws around unapproved drugs. To learn more, navigate to Media Contact Colby Wilson [email protected] ### SOURCE: Stop Gas Station Heroin Copyright 2025 EZ Newswire
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Stop Gas Station Heroin Coalition Applauds Senate Appropriators for Closing Hemp Loophole
Funding bill provision would slow spread of intoxicating hemp products, protecting kids and communities The Stop Gas Station Heroin coalition today commended the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations for unanimously approving the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. This Senate funding bill and its House counterpart, approved in committee last month, show bipartisan support for closing the unregulated, intoxicating hemp loophole — correcting a legal gray area created by the 2018 Farm Bill and slowing the spread of Gas Station Heroin in American communities. ' Gas Station Heroin " refers to a range of foreign lab-made synthetic substances that include tianeptine, nitrous oxide, semi-synthetic and synthetic alkaloid products, and intoxicating hemp products such as Delta-8, Delta-9, Delta-10, and HHC. At issue here is this latter category of intoxicating hemp and its legal definition. According to the 2018 Farm Bill, the federal government classifies hemp as cannabis and its derivatives with no more than 0.3% Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on a dry weight basis. Delta-9-THC is the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis, responsible for the euphoric high associated with marijuana use. Critically, the Senate funding bill would decrease the delta-9-THC limit for hemp-derived products to zero. The government's current definition of hemp permits the manufacture and distribution of products containing non-delta-9 intoxicating cannabinoids — including delta-8, delta-10, and HHC — as long as their delta-9 content remains below the statutory threshold. The narrow standards of the 2018 Farm Bill have resulted in a regulatory loophole exploited by manufacturers and retailers of intoxicating, hemp-derived products sold in convenience stores, gas stations, and smoke shops across the country. These chemically altered, highly concentrated products are concocted with imported extracts from overseas labs and rake in significant revenue for the international Gas Station Heroin syndicate, a multi-billion-dollar enterprise exploiting legal loopholes to drive addiction and profit while endangering Americans. The Senate funding bill restores the original intent of the 2018 Farm Bill, which was never meant to create a loophole for synthetic THC, while protecting legitimate hemp farmers from rogue actors flooding the market with lab-made Gas Station Heroin. Moreover, the bill would mark the most consequential federal intervention in cannabinoid policy in years, preempting and superseding a growing patchwork of state laws by establishing a uniform federal prohibition on synthetically manipulated and intoxicating hemp derivatives. This important legislation underscores that natural botanicals are not the same as harmful synthetic substances. Although whole plant products have been used safely for centuries, bad actors are now isolating basic compounds from plants and chemically altering them in labs to create hyper-potent drugs that are poisoning consumers. Stop Gas Station Heroin applauds Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee Susan Collins, Chair of the Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee John Hoeven, and Senator Mitch McConnell for their leadership in combating the Gas Station Heroin crisis by seeking to close the hemp loophole. About Stop Gas Station Heroin Stop Gas Station Heroin is a national coalition that aims to educate consumers about harmful synthetic drugs and advocate for smart regulation that distinguishes between legitimate, natural botanicals and dangerous, synthetic drugs, combined with enforcement of current federal laws around unapproved drugs. To learn more, navigate to Media Contact Colby Wilson [email protected] ### SOURCE: Stop Gas Station Heroin Copyright 2025 EZ Newswire
Associated Press
11-07-2025
- Health
- Associated Press
Illegal Drug Manufacturers Cook Up Fake Studies to Promote Dangerous Gas Station Heroin Products as Safe
Pilot study of 7 and Pseudo in dogs commissioned by leading manufacturer illuminates significant public health concerns with synthetic drugs The Stop Gas Station Heroin coalition reviewed the beagle study commissioned by CBD American Shaman, a Missouri-based company that reports generating the majority of its revenue from the sale of '7' products in over 200 retail locations, to evaluate the effects of escalating oral doses of their formulations of 7 (semi-synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine), and Pseudo (semi-synthetic mitragynine pseudoindoxyl). Commissioned to support an Investigational New Drug (IND) submission, the study's clear conflicts of interest are as alarming as its findings. Consider that CBD American Shaman, the sponsor of the research, has falsely marketed and sold these products as dietary supplements since 2022. Moreover, the study was released by the Holistic Alternative Recovery Trust (HART), an advocacy group comprised of members with a vested interest in 7-OH products. This study raises serious concerns about the safety of 7 and Pseudo products, especially with regard to CBD American Shaman's marketed 'serving size' of 7.5 mg per serving, or half a tablet. More concerning is that in reality users consume significantly greater amounts of these products, and misuse risks include tolerance and addiction. Critically, the study's findings suggest that doses of more than 0.3 mg exceed a conservative threshold for human safety. This figure is based on adverse effects observed in dogs at 10 mg doses, scaled to a human-equivalent dose using FDA-recommended methods. In other words, CBD American Shaman's marketed serving size is more than 25 times greater than what could be considered reasonably safe based on the study's own preclinical data, and many more times greater if measured against normal consumption of these products. Lastly, what HART is ignoring, irrespective of the science they put forward, is that 7 and Pseudo have been chemically formulated and put into the market with the intent to cure, treat and mitigate disease; that is in relation to chronic pain, and opioid use disorder. Despite marketing their products as natural botanicals, they are producing unapproved new pharmaceutical drugs, which is illegal. In order to protect Americans, they should be conducting rigorous peer reviewed science that is published in a journal and vetted as a part of a robust IND submission that proves the efficacy and safety of 7 and Pseudo in comparison to the prescription drugs they are attempting to mimic. Without this critical research and approval from the FDA for prescribed use of 7 and Pseudo, these products should not be on the market. The study's design, results, and implications are expanded upon below: The original study design sought to give 10, 20, 40 mg of 7-OH or mitragynine psuedoindoxyl twice daily for 7 days for beagles ranging from 8–10.2 kg. However, at the lowest dose of 10 mg, a Serious Adverse Event (SAE) occurred causing the study to be halted). What does this mean? After the SAE, the sponsor adjusted its protocol to 1/10 of the original doses (1, 2, 4 mg per day in dogs), which is 1/20 of the daily dose. However, even at doses at 1 mg, 2 mg and 4 mg per day, adverse events (AEs) were still 2.5–2.7x more common than placebo. Specific AEs include GI disturbances, including blood and mucus in feces. All episodes of drooling appeared in dogs only after the daily dose was escalated to 4 mg. What does this mean? Missing pieces in research design and unfinished reports: The presented study of 7 and Pseudo in dogs was incomplete, missing key safety endpoints, and inappropriately designed to assess safe use of the test articles. Some of these are described below In Summary The study is incomplete, shows significant public health risk with these products, and it doesn't justify extrapolating to humans to establish the safety of 7 or Pseudo, especially when: Final Thoughts What HART is ignoring, irrespective of the science they put forward, is that 7 and Pseudo have been chemically formulated and put into the market with the intent to cure, treat and mitigate disease — namely chronic pain and opioid use disorder. They have intentionally produced a novel drug and are currently marketing it without FDA approval, which is a clear violation of federal law. They should be doing more science as a part of a robust Investigational New Drug (IND) and New Drug Application (NDA) submission that not only proves the efficacy and safety of 7 and Pseudo but also shows that they are better than the drugs they seek to replace (Oxycontin, Percocet, etc.). Until such time that they have done this and gained approval from the FDA for prescribed use of 7 and Pseudo, these products should not be on the market, and should certainly not be available for $6 a pill at your local smoke shop or convenience store. To learn more about Stop Gas Station Heroin and its mission, navigate to Sources [1] Human Equivalent Dose (HED) = Animal Equivalent Dose (AED) x 0.54. This is based on conversion mentioned in study design and also standard dose conversion. About Stop Gas Station Heroin Stop Gas Station Heroin is a national coalition that aims to educate consumers about harmful synthetic drugs and advocate for smart regulation that distinguishes between legitimate, natural botanicals and dangerous, synthetic drugs, combined with enforcement of current federal laws around unapproved drugs. To learn more, navigate to Media Contact Colby Wilson [email protected] ### SOURCE: Stop Gas Station Heroin Copyright 2025 EZ Newswire
