NARATHIWAT, Thailand — As the violence-plagued provinces of southern Thailand continue to struggle with a shadowy insurgency, the restive region is battling a new enemy: a drug cocktail made from a local leaf that is seducing the young.

The drug, kratom, is far less debilitating than the methamphetamines and heroin that are trafficked through the area. But its rampant use is enough of a problem that it has caught the attention of the Thai government, and led to increased attempts to stop the trafficking.

“It’s an epidemic,” said Srisompob Jitpiromsri, the associate dean at Prince of Songkla University in the southern city of Pattani. “Kratom use has spread all over the place.”

Kratom is a tree that grows in abundance in the tropical jungles here in the south. Chewing the red-veined leaves of the tree, which is in the same family as the coffee tree, was until recently a fading tradition among farmers and rubber tappers who sought an energy boost and stamina under the oppressive sun.