Utah Issues Urgent Warning: Four Deaths Tied to Products Sold as 'Cat's Claw'

If a product on a gas-station shelf says "cat's claw," most people would assume it is a mild herbal supplement — the common name for Uncaria tomentosa, a plant long sold in the natural-health aisle. That label is exactly why Utah officials are warning about it right now.

On October 5, 2026, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the Utah Poison Control Center, and the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) issued a joint urgent public health warning following four deaths across the state linked to high-potency, illegal chemical compounds found in products sold as herbal supplements — including items labeled "cat's claw" and products marketed as kratom.

This is a supply warning, not a reason to panic. But it describes a specific trap worth understanding: a label that names something harmless, on a product that is not.

What officials found

According to UDAF's laboratory testing, the products — sold online and in some local smoke shops and gas stations, often under brand names like "Buzzers" — are misleadingly labeled as containing "cat's claw" or its scientific name Uncaria tomentosa. Natural cat's claw itself is not harmful. What testing actually found inside were two semi-synthetic kratom chemicals:

• Mitragynine pseudoindoxyl (MGPI)
• Dihydro-7-hydroxymitragynine (MGM-15)

The labels, officials said, often claim the product is legal and free of kratom — yet simultaneously warn that it is for "adults only/21+" or that it produces strong psychoactive effects. That combination, officials noted, is a contradiction a consumer should treat as a red flag.

The Utah Poison Control Center's advice is direct: do not buy or use any product labeled "cat's claw," any product marked "adults only/21+," or any non-prescription item marketed as legal while promising a psychoactive "high."

Why these two chemicals matter

MGPI and MGM-15 are not botanical kratom. They are manufactured, semi-synthetic compounds related to 7-hydroxymitragynine — the concentrated kratom derivative that has driven a wave of warnings and deaths nationwide over the past two years.

On August 26, 2026, the Drug Enforcement Administration used its temporary-scheduling authority to place MGPI, MGM-15 and a related compound, MGM-16, in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, citing "an imminent hazard to public safety." That order is effective through August 26, 2028. It followed a separate July 6, 2026 DEA notice targeting 7-hydroxymitragynine above a specified concentration threshold. The Food and Drug Administration has not approved kratom or any kratom-derived compound for any medical use.

Clinically, these compounds act on the mu-opioid receptors — the same receptors that morphine, fentanyl and prescription painkillers act on. Utah's agriculture department describes the synthetic kratom concentrates as "significantly more potent than morphine at opioid receptors, making them unpredictable and dangerous." State health officials list the risks plainly: addiction, dangerous withdrawal, overdose and death.

There is one piece of genuinely good news in the warning. Because these drugs act on opioid receptors, naloxone — the overdose-reversal medication also known as Narcan — is effective against an overdose from these products. Utah DHHS said so explicitly. It is not a wasted dose. If someone is unresponsive or their breathing has slowed or stopped after using one of these products, naloxone can reverse it.

The warning also notes that evidence-based treatments for standard opioid dependence and withdrawal are effective for people struggling with these substances, and that anyone going through withdrawal should seek medical attention rather than trying to push through it alone.

This is not Utah's first warning

The October 5 alert is the latest in a series. State agencies issued a similar warning in late July 2026, after a mislabeled kratom product sold in Utah County was linked to at least one death and several overdoses. A Utah lawmaker has since pushed for a broader kratom ban.

Utah is unusual in that it already regulates kratom more tightly than most states. Under state law, only pure, natural leaf kratom may legally be sold. Products containing kratom extracts or semi-synthetic chemicals are illegal, and UDAF's consumer guidance spells out the specifics: products with 7-hydroxymitragynine above 0.4% of the alkaloid fraction are illegal, and 7-hydroxymitragynine and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl products are Schedule I drugs. Retailers must hold the right license scope, and consumers are advised to buy only from the state's Registered Product List.

In other words, the products in this warning are not a gray area. They are illegal to sell in Utah — and yet officials say they are still finding them on shelves, and online.

What to do — plainly

If you or someone you care about has bought anything labeled "cat's claw," "kratom extract" or a "legal high," this is information, not shame. A few practical steps:

• Do not use these products. If a label claims the item is legal and kratom-free and warns it is for 21+ or produces a psychoactive high, treat that as a warning about a disguised drug.
• Keep naloxone where you can reach it — not in a drawer you have to search. Two or more doses is safer than one; if breathing does not return, repeat and keep rescue breathing going.
• Call 911 at the first sign of an overdose — slow or stopped breathing, snoring or gurgling sounds, blue lips, extreme drowsiness or unresponsiveness. Good Samaritan laws protect people who call for help.
• A fentanyl test strip will not detect these compounds. MGPI, MGM-15 and 7-OH are opioid-receptor drugs that a standard fentanyl strip is not built to catch. A negative strip does not make a product safe.
• Do not stop abruptly if you have been using daily. Withdrawal from opioid-type compounds can be severe, and the days right after stopping are the highest-risk window because tolerance falls quickly. Talk to a clinician about a managed plan.
• Medication for opioid use disorder works. Buprenorphine and methadone are FDA-approved, prescribed by licensed clinicians, and far safer than any unregulated retail product.
• In Utah, report illegal sales. If you see kratom extracts or semi-synthetic kratom products being sold, UDAF asks you to email udaf-kratom@utah.gov.

Where to get help

• Utah Poison Control Center: 1-800-222-1222 — 24/7, free and confidential, for overdose, treatment guidance, or withdrawal questions.
• SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-4357 — free, confidential, 24/7, English and Spanish.
• Find a treatment provider: findtreatment.gov
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988.
• Emergency: 911.

Families who are unsure what a loved one has actually been taking do not have to figure it out alone. A clinician, a local health department or a treatment center can help sort out what is being used, what the risks are, and what the next step should be. The point of a warning like this one is not to frighten anyone out of asking for help — it is to make sure that when they ask, someone is ready with a plan.