Poppy tea

Dried poppy pods and seeds

Poppy tea is a narcotic analgesic tea which is brewed from the pods or seeds of the Papaver somniferum plant. It has been consumed for its analgesic, anti-diarrhoeal, and/or psychoactive effects for as long as the poppy has been cultivated down to the present day in many parts of the world. It is depicted both in Asian literature and Western literature, such as in opium dens. Reputed modern users of poppy-head decoctions including poppy tea for analgesia include Otto von Bismarck, Charles Darwin, and Charles Dickens. It can also be used in small amounts as an analgesic, anti-diarrhoeal, and sedative for many mammals and birds.

In some places, preparation of tea may be preferred to opium as the latex of the plant (itself the primary component of opium) is illegal. In the Netherlands, all parts of the Papaver Somniferum after harvesting (except for the seeds) are illegal by law, as they are List I drugs of the Opium Law. Because of use for decorative purposes, the trade in, and possession of dried Papaver Somniferum is not actively prosecuted. Trade in, or possession of dried Papaver Somniferum with the intention of drug use can be prosecuted, although this is very unlikely. For this reason, it is an alternative to pharmaceutical opioids, which are highly regulated in most countries, while dried Papaver somniferum is easily obtainable as it is commonly available for decorative use. Many varieties, strains, and cultivars of Papaver somniferum are in existence, and the alkaloid content can vary significantly.

In the United States it is legal to purchase poppy seeds but all other parts of the plant are considered a schedule II controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substance Act of 1970. The Opium Poppy Exclusion Act of 1942 bans growing of the poppy in many cases but is generally not a problem for gardeners as the plant is widely grown for the flowers and for seeds for replanting and cooking, and for much of US history poppies were a significant cash crop, with the government especially pushing for farmers to grow more poppies for medicinal use during wars up to World War I. In practice poppy growing will get one in legal trouble in cases of very large plots and/or scored pods.

Poppy tea preparations are part of a spectrum of decoctions of poppy straw which use acid-base reactions and heat to extract soluble alkaloids from the straw, or simply uses water for the extraction, in particular the empty seed capsules are used. Alcohol can be used as a solvent on poppy straw as discussed below. Green poppies and other parts of the plant can also be used, as well as other end products ranging from poppy straw in yogurt to intermediates for the processing of near-pharmaceutical grade alkaloid salts can be made, as explored below.

Poppy seed tea relies more on washing trace amounts alkaloids from the surface of the seeds and usually relies on slightly acidified water and mechanical agitation to produce an end product which is different from poppy pod tea. Grinding seeds is unnecessary and counterproductive unless the weak cannabinoids present in the fatty portions of the seed are sought, in which case different extractions beyond the scope of this article would probably be required.

Tea obtained from poppy leaves also contains alkaloids and their salts but is also a much different, and weaker, product.

Poppy tea contains two groups of alkaloids: phenanthrenes (including morphine and codeine) and benzylisoquinolines (including papaverine). Of these, morphine is the most prevalent comprising 8%-14% of the total. Its effects derive from the fact that it binds to and activates mu opioid receptors in the brain, spinal cord, stomach and intestine.

Dried Papaver somniferum capsules and stems will, if harvested and dried by the usual protocol, contain significantly lower quantities of thebaine than opium made from latex as well as somewhat more codeine. When ingested, thebaine causes nausea, vomiting, and mild myoclonus. Thebaine is an important precursor for manufacture of opioid pharmaceuticals and a small subclass of stimulants, and is more concentrated in the roots of Papaver somniferum than elsewhere. Thebaine is found in much larger quantities in the Iranian Poppy (Papaver bracteatum), which also contains a great deal of codeine. Another narcotic-opium-alkaloid-bearing poppy, Papaver setigerum (which is sometimes referred to as the Oriental Poppy although that name is properly applied to Papaver orientale; sometimes the name white poppy is used—it is also important to note that this poppy is neither the Persian White strain of Papaver somniferum nor is it the White Poppy, i.e., a synonym for Papaver somniferum var. album, a cultivar with light-coloured seeds and a tendency towards elongaged oval seed capsules) is also used in some industrial settings as a source of morphine but it is somewhat less concentrated than in Papaver somniferum. Other species of poppies, numbering in the hundreds, do not contain morphine but may contain minor opium alkaloids like protopine, which are not narcotic.

Preparation and consumption

There are many different preparations of poppy tea. Most methods call for the "poppy straw" material (the seedpod and sometimes the stem) only to be used. Most methods call for the straw to be ground into a fine powder. A fine powder is needed because most of the opium latex is located within the cell walls of the pod. The seeds are discarded most of the time because they do not contain a high enough alkaloid content. However, there are dozens of poppy seed tea recipes. A quick and efficient method is to use a stovetop espresso maker. This results in a fairly concentrated beverage and does not appear to destroy the alkaloids despite involving steam passing through the poppy straw.

There is much debate on the best preparations of poppy tea. Many claim that boiling rapidly is the best, others insist on strictly cold water, and even more stand behind steeping in hot water. Some methods call for citric acid or acetic acid (vinegar) to be used during extraction. The purpose of the addition of citric and/or acetic acid is to lower the pH level of the neutral water (pH7) down to a slightly acidic pH of 6.5 which is optimal for morphine extraction.

The first is obvious, the second works in theory but to an extent that is very difficult to determine a priori. Production of 6-MAM from purified morphine is possible using the method discussed in the Wikipedia article for morphine for turning morphine into heroin (diacetylmorphine, the 3,6 acetyl diester of morphine) by means of the addition of acetic anhydride—substituting acetic acid for the anhydride will result in a mixture of the initial form of morphine (i.e. base or sulphate, hydrochloride &c.), 6-MAM, and morphine acetate. It is unclear what proportion of 6-MAM forms in the case of an aqueous solution of all the opium components. Another possible byproduct is acetylcodeine. Addition of nicotinic acid, otherwise known as Niacin and Vitamin B3, would give rise to 3-mononicotinylmorphine, related to morphine in a similar way, viz. 3,6 dinicotinylmorphine is a painkiller known as nicomorphine (Vilan) which is also three times stronger than morphine and gives rise to 6-MNM by means of hydrolysis. Adding aspirin to the mix theoretically does another thing of the same sort. (opiophile.com, opioids.com, poppies.org, and Wikipedia articles on drugs mentioned above including German versions) Acetylating with acetyl chloride will result in a higher 6-MAM yield and most clandestine production of heroin from powder morphine results in a mixture of morphine, 3-MAM, 6-MAM, and heroin; 6-MAM is also a breakdown product of heroin which is accelerated by the presence of water.

When the tea is drunk, its effects begin after about 30 minutes, lasting up to 8 hours. It is intensely bitter and some users add other flavorings to the tea. The color and bitterness of the tea will give the user an idea of how potent the pods are. The darker and more bitter the tea comes out to be the more potent it will be. It is wise for the user to be careful with the amount they consume if the tea comes out to be very bitter and very dark. Grapefruit juice may also inhibit liver enzyme activation, thus increasing the strength and duration of the opiate effects.

The tea is also sometimes evaporated over a very low heat to make a thick, concentrated liquid or a dry powder, and some users put this material into gel caps to allow for dosage to be measured more carefully.

Although oral administration is the most common, dried poppy tea can also be snorted or smoked. However, many users report unpleasant side effects from these methods because of the non-active and potentially irritating substances which are present in addition to the alkaloids. Dried poppy tea is not the same as opium, as the former is made from the whole plant while the latter is made from exuded latex alone. Some users bypass the tea stage and simply add poppy straw to a food such as yogurt. This method partially masks the taste but may lead to more gastric discomfort than consuming tea or dried tea.

The pods may also be used in the green (undried) state to make tea.

Decoctions of poppy straw using alcohol as the solvent, such as vodka, slivovitz, gin, grain alcohol, or reagent-grade anhydrous ethanol can extract alkaloids over a period of hours without heating; the resulting liquid can be used as is or the liquid evapourated over low heat or in a pan to produce a liquid concentrate with less alcohol (heating to 80°C to effect fractional distillation by selectively boiling off the alcohol) or a solid which can be processed further into a material similar to Concentrate of Poppy Straw or processed by other methods to be used in a manner similar to opium derived from latex, e.g. processed into smoking opium or used to create medicinal products or extract alkaloids. Quite often home users will make laudanum, paregoric, or Black Drop (non-alcoholic laudanum) from published recipes with the concentrate from poppy straw decoctions, and if the initial liquid is to be completely dried, isopropyl or methyl alcohol can be used, as can other suitable organic solvents. Processing of the dry extract to isolate morphine is also possible, although the amount resulting from low to moderate to reasonably large numbers of heads can be barely visible to the naked eye. Whilst the quantity can vary vastly depending on strain, cultivar, growing conditions, harvesting and drying and many other factors, large poppy heads can contain up to 80 mg of anhydrous morphine base equivalent, with the actual percentage extracted also being over a huge range. The production of black tar heroin starting from poppy straw decoctions is of course also possible.

Seeds may also be used in large quantites to produce a decoction by agitating them in a solution of slightly acidifed water. Untreated poppy seeds may contain upwards of 330-515 mg of morphine and 75-200 mg of codeine per kilo of seeds, whereas most seeds available commercially have been washed which cuts the alkaloid content by 50 per cent or more; this adds even more to the batch-to-batch variability in content, as noted below with respect to the California overdose case.

An urban legend asserts that commercially-available seeds are deliberately sprayed with dilute solutions of pesticides, particularly organophosphates and carbamtes, or other powerful laxative agents at quantites which become clinically significant if a large quantity of seeds or the washings thereof are consumed. Diarrhoea which comes in the hour after consumption of tea is more likely the result of the interaction of other alkaloids present such as papaverine, noscapine, narceine or others. In the case of tea made from the straw, even more likely to cause this is the fact that the pods contain significant quantites of dietary fibre.

The ingestion of the seeds themselves in large quantities will have simailar effects as well as effects from cannabinoids present in the fats in the seeds. This practice can be very irritating to the upper gastro-intestinal tract and may under some circumstances compound constipation to a dangerous degree.

Effects

Effects vary widely depending on dosage (amount of poppy straw used, alkaloid content of poppies and the quality of extraction), on individual sensitivity and on any opiate tolerance which has built up. In varying degrees, the tea's contents are the base from which all opiates (natural, semi-synthetic & synthetic) are derived. The user can expect a warming sensation of the skin and body during onset. Since many of the opioid receptors are located in the spinal cord (CNC) as well as in the digestive tract, the user describes the ability to feel the intestinal tract with the sensation of lightness, and pleasure. An elevated mood change follows, along with a state of euphoria and well being. Pupils tend to constrict, and the face, neck, and outer extremities flush. Additionally, some users report a sensation of light pressure on the back of the neck. Since opioids are known to release histamine, the user may become itchy as the liver starts to metabolize the alkaloids. Effects also include euphoric feelings, happiness, drowsiness, and loss of concentration. A small amount of dried poppy or poppy tea at night is an effective remedy for restless leg syndrome (RLS), and is superior to quinine, codeine alone, or clonidine for this purpose because of the presence of papaverine, a non-narcotic smooth-muscle relaxant which impacts vascular systems, but withdrawal from the narcotic constituents of the tea, mainly codeine and morphine, will paradoxically cause RLS ("kicking" the habit).

Side effects and tolerance

Side effects increase with dosage and include sleepiness, mild stomachache, lethargy, itching, slowed breathing and nausea. Nausea can be attributed to the presence of noscapine and is more common in first-time or inexperienced users. At high doses, the side effects are dangerous and can cause death through cessation of breathing or choking on vomit. Constipation often results from prolonged use (as with any opiate).

Additionally, frequent use results in tolerance and dependence. Chemical dependency typically builds up after one to two weeks of daily usage, but varies by individual. Frequent use followed by abrupt abstinence gives rise to withdrawal symptoms including leg and abdominal cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, insomnia, cravings and anxiety. Physical symptoms of withdrawal usually fade after 4–10 days but cravings and psychological dependence may continue for longer. Treatment methods for addiction are generally the same for any opiate.

Overdose

A case of fatal overdose of poppy seed tea in conjunction with other drugs in 2003 has been reported on a website authored by the victim's parents. The site alleges that a sample of poppy seed tea was sent for laboratory analysis. This victim is reported to have used 3.5 lb of poppy seeds in his tea preparation as on several previous occasions. The concentration of morphine in the tea was shown to be around 250 μg/ml and the amount of morphine which had been consumed by the individual was around 500 mg. This is about five times the lethal oral dose (without tolerance to opioids).ABC News reported on the incident in January 2008.

See Also

• Doda (Drug)

External links

• Poppy Tea FAQ
• Poppy seed contents include oleamide, a hypnotic amide agent
• Poppy Seed Tea Can Kill
• "Opium Made Easy: One gardener's encounter with the war on drugs" by Michael Pollan in Harper's Magazine, April 1, 1997