Bottles and pills found at gas stations and smoke shops claim to boost energy, focus and mood. But experts warn they may contain a drug that causes heroin-like effects.

“It acts similar to what we have with other opioids like morphine, heroin,” said Dr. Christopher Holstege, medical director of UVA Health’s Blue Ridge Poison Center, describing 7-hydroxymitragynine or 7-OH.

The chemical is derived from kratom, a plant the Food and Drug Administration has warned consumers not to use — citing risks that include substance use disorder, seizures and even death, especially when mixed with alcohol and other substances.

Holstege said 7-OH has a much stronger effect than the parent compound found in the kratom plant.

“There are products that are now arising where this chemical is actually the sole chemical that’s in tablet form or liquid form,” said Holstege. “The dangers are that this can have opioid effects and can cause people to have respiratory depression, stop breathing. It can lead to someone actually dying, if they took enough of this.”

In July, the FDA recommended a nationwide ban on products containing 7-OH, but that ban would not take effect until the Drug Enforcement Administration finalizes rules regulating the ingredient.

The FDA said it was not looking to regulate natural kratom leaf products.

“This (7-OH) is something that most likely was made synthetically,” Holstege said.

He said the kratom plant may have small traces of 7-OH, but through simple chemical reactions, manufacturers are able to make extremely potent doses.

“In toxicology, it’s always about the dose. What dose are people getting that can cause the toxicity? And so, if you take a kratom product, you’re going to get very little … but these other products, you have the potential of getting a larger dose, and that’s where you might run into problems.”

Holstege added that since this is an unregulated product, the labeling could be inaccurate as there are often little, if any, quality control measures.

“All bets are off … as to exactly what you’re getting,” he said. “What dose are you getting? … There needs to be controls on these, before we start seeing people get hurt or dying.”

Holstege said because of 7-OH’s opiate effects, naloxone or Narcan can help reverse any overdoses from the product.