New Kratom users always ask about the difference between Kratom strain colors. Indeed, 10 years ago when I started Kratom I was curious about the differences between strain colors, and a Kratom veteran told me a concise answer, which is that the Kratom vein colors correspond to a stoplight.
Essentially, Green vein means go, Red vein means stop, and Yellow/White is inbetween.
To be more specific, Green vein Kratom has more energizing effects, including fatigue relief, articulation, and focus. This makes Green vein Kratom excellent for work or the day time in general.
Red vein Kratom has more relaxing and sedating effects. Generally Red vein Kratom is better for pain relief, insomnia relief, and stress relief. It is optimal to take Red vein Kratom at night or when you have no work, since Red vein is likely to put you to sleep within a couple of hours.
Notably, Gold vein is a variation of Red Vein, and the same principles apply for Gold vein Kratom.
As for Yellow and White vein, which are essentially interchangeable, they have the combined effects of Green and Red, meaning there’s lots of energy, but also alot of relaxation and sedation. Many Kratom veterans actually prefer White vein Kratom due to its full spectrum of effects.
On a final note, regardless of which Kratom vein color you use, it will have a bit of the effects of the other vein colors. For example, Green vein can be moderately relaxing and sedating, and Red vein can be moderately energizing. The key difference is that Green vein Kratom usually doesn’t make people tired, while Red vein Kratom usually does have significant sedation after the first couple of hours.
Thus, the stoplight metaphor is extremely useful for understanding the differences between Kratom strain colors. In-fact, one of the theories regarding the origin of Kratom strain colors is that they were named after the colors on a stoplight, although there are many other theories as well.