According to Health Canada, kratom is a plant native to Southeast Asia that is widely available on the internet, often sold in pill or powder form. The psychoactive herb is known to create both stimulative and sedative effects.
Levi Manson holds a photo of his late brother, Aaron, joined by mom Troylana and dad Bart. This photo was taken in September 2021 at Prince Charles Park in downtown Kamloops. Photo by Michael Potestio/KTW /PNG
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A Kamloops family is dealing with the knowledge their loved one ingested a substance he likely thought would assist his drug recovery, when it instead contributed to his death.
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Last September, KTW spoke with the parents of Aaron Manson, 26, who died from a fatal drug overdose in his home on April 26, 2021.
While a record number of people in B.C. continue to die from overdoses — the majority of which are fentanyl-related deaths, according to his coroner’s report — Aaron’s death was caused by a plant-derived opioid known as kratom (Mitragyna speciosa).
Aaron’s mother, Troylana Manson, is now spreading the word about the dangers of kratom in the hope that others don’t suffer the same fate as her son.
The coroner’s report revealed Aaron died from a fatal mix of cocaine, kratom, diphenhydramine (an over-the-counter allergy medicine) and hydromorphone, an opioid used to treat pain that Manson was not prescribed.
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“The combined effects of mitragynine (kratom, diphenhydramine and hydromorphone can cause life-threatening respiratory depression and failure,” the coroner’s report reads, classifying the death as accidental.
The amount of cocaine in Aaron’s system was described as within a concentration associated with “recreational use,” while the diphenhydramine and hydromorphone were within a “therapeutic range,” …….