Toss and Wash Kratom or Kratom Tea?

KRATOM TEA VS. TOSS AND WASH

INTRODUCTION

Have you ever gagged on a spoonful of kratom and asked if there was a better way? Are you interested in a simpler way to take kratom that is more palatable? Today we’re going to look at kratom tea vs toss and wash.

But why should you be drinking tea instead of following the toss and wash fad? Read ahead to find out which you’d choose when it comes to kratom tea vs toss and wash!

KRATOM

Kratom is an evergreen tree which naturally grows throughout most of Southeast Asia. It is in the Rubiaceae family, also known as the coffee family. Along with coffee, kratom is also related to quinine containing plants as well as *Psychotria viridis*. It was first documented and added to the western botanical canon in 1836 by Dutch botanist Pieter Korthals.

The scientific name for kratom is Mitragyna speciosa. The trees have been known to grow to over 80 feet tall. At the Top Tree greenhouse located in Appalachia in the United States, our three year old trees can put on 2 to 3 feet in the summer. The leaves are a vibrant green, usually with a prominent red vein running from the petiole to the tip. However, vein colors play an important role in kratom categorization. A great overview of strains and veins can be found HERE.

Once a kratom tree is three or four years old, it’s ready to harvest. The younger plants, especially ones grown outside of their natural habitat, produce far fewer active alkaloids.

WHAT IS “TOSS AND WASH?”

Toss and wash is “tossing” a spoonful of kratom leaf powder into your mouth. And then “washing” it down with a gulp of water or beverage of your choice. It’s messy, foul-tasting, and can be hard on the stomach. Plus it’s a method you wouldn’t want to perform in front of your friends, family, or co-workers. That said, it is the quickest and cheapest way to consume kratom.

WHY DO PEOPLE USE THE TOSS AND WASH METHOD?

For one, tossing and washing maximizes the amount of alkaloids that will make it from the leaf material and into your bloodstream. This is a messy, but effective way of taking your kratom.

But it has its drawbacks, and many of them are aesthetic. At a minimum, the taste of a small pile of powdered kratom leaves on your tongue can be too much for some.

There are ways to improve the experience of tossing and washing. You can first fill your mouth half-full of water and then carefully spoon the powder on top of the water. Then quickly gulp down a glass of water in an attempt to constrain the taste to a fraction of a second.

Yet even following this tip will not spare you from occasionally participating in an impromptu cinnamon challenge without your consent. Coughing powder, spiraling plumes of green particles which catch the light as you drool. All the while you’re gasping for breath amid the choking aftermath. Sounds fun.

LEAF POWDER AND YOUR STOMACH

If you’re like me, you might hesitate before returning that spoonful of powder back to your mouth. After such an act of treachery by my beloved ally kratom, I stand over my scale and think whether it is still worth it. It is: kratom’s benefits far outweigh the occasional choking performance. But why must I have to tune-out and grit my teeth when I am taking kratom?

Even after finishing my toss and wash, the negatives associated with this method of taking kratom continue. Suddenly taking a small pile of ground up, raw leaf powder — especially if on an empty stomach — can be uncomfortable on the digestive tract.

Now, if we put this all together, it’s clear why the toss & wash method is both popular and unpleasant. It’s effective, but crude; fast, but not socially acceptable. And for those wondering if it’s a popular consumption method in Southeast Asia, the short answer is no.

So what’s the alternative? Now that we understand what tossing and washing is, let’s start sipping on some tea!

KRATOM TEA VS TOSS & WASH

The benefits of kratom have traditionally been balanced against the negative effects of consuming the leaf itself. In Thailand, where kratom has been used for centuries, the leaves are either quickly chewed as a quid or drunk as a tea. All three of these methods of consumption avoid swallowing any leaf matter. Why disregard tradition without reason? Make tea!

Separating the good teas from the bad is not that hard of a task. Would you like your “kratom tea” to be powder mixed with hot water that makes for a gritty drink that still entail consuming leaf biomatter? Or, would you like to steep a tea bag in some boiling water to extract the alkaloids without having to consume the plant matter? Both options are available on the internet, but multi-strain tea bags can only be found at Top Tree Herbs.

The primary difference between tossing and washing and drinking a kratom tea is where the plant matter ends up. Ultimately, both methods are effective at getting the desirable alkaloids into your body, but with tea, the leaf ends up being discarded, or, hopefully, composted.

Another benefit of drinking tea is that you have already done the work of your stomach in removing the alkaloids from the biomass matrix of the kratom leaf. And when your body has an easier job processing something, it often means you experience the benefits sooner!

HOW DO I MAKE KRATOM TEA?

Making kratom tea is simple, and we’ve written about many methods of brewing your perfect cup in previous posts. Simply add boiling water, some acidic fruit juice, and let steep in the hot water for about 15 to 20 minutes. You can then sweeten to taste — although, we’ve come to notice that the natural bitter notes grow on us over time, just as was our experience when first drinking coffee.

You can also make tea time a relaxing ritual. Tea is all about patience. It is about learning how you like your tea, and what variables there are to play around with. After a few tries, and playing around with things like steep time, citrus content, sweetening, complementary herbal teas, etc, you’ll have found what you like. Tea time is about you perfecting an art!

CONCLUSION

So there you have it. Ultimately, the question of kratom tea vs. toss and wash boils down to how you feel about eating raw leaf powder and how much enjoyment you want out of your kratom practice. At Top Tree Herbs, we are all about giving kratom consumers the option to have a premium kratom tea experience.

Are you interested in a cup of kratom tea? Visit our store and pick up our better brewing bundle to start sipping on delicious tea!