Charleston’s vape shops aren’t just selling flavored nicotine cartridges anymore. Kratom, a plant that historically has been used as a home-remedy painkiller, has exploded in popularity among smoke shops and other dens as a marketable, legal substitute for opium.

“Kratom is sinister,” said one Lowcountry professional who wished to remain unnamed to protect his family’s privacy. “I went on a personal crusade to announce to everybody that this is wrong.”

The plant contains several psychoactive compounds, including 7-OH, a powerful opioid that can be synthesized or concentrated. This compound is then often mixed into cocktails at local kava bars and smoke shops or added to gummies and sold at gas stations and convenience stores.

While 7-OH products offer a cheap and powerful opioid-like hi

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