In an episode of the classic television show Seinfeld, one character tests positive for opium and experiences career problems because she ate muffins with poppy seeds. Although this sounds goofy, it appears that products related to poppy seeds might pose a real-life drug-related danger.
On July 12, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a letter to manufacturers of a product called PoppySeed Wash. The FDA warns that the company claims that its product can be used for medical purposes. Thus, the FDA classifies the product as a new drug, but says that the company has not sought the FDA approval it needs to market itself as a drug-like medically beneficial product.
PoppySeed Wash includes unwashed poppy seeds that users combine with water to make a tea-like beverage. Some people consume poppy seeds because they claim they help them ease their pain, others consume them to treat diarrhea, and still others consume them to get high.
Other people might use poppy seeds as a replacement for opioid/opiate drugs. Poppy seeds themselves are not narcotics, but the seeds come in pods that are filled with sap. Drug manufacturers use this sap to create drugs such as codeine, opium, heroin, opium, and morphine.
Since PoppySeed Wash and other products use unwashed poppy seeds, there’s a good possibility that these seeds have touched such opiate/opioid-related sap. The seeds could have enough of the drug products to cause people ingesting them to fail drug tests.
Some people claim that poppy seed products can cause more than drug test failures. Steve and Betty Hacala say that poppy seeds killed their son Stephen in 2016. Stephen bought the unwashed seeds online and ingested them with water. An autopsy on the young man showed dangerous amounts of morphine in his blood.
Once again, the use of products such as unwashed poppy seeds illustrates that so-called natural products may not be safe. Consumers should seek assistance to educate themselves on new products and their potential effects.
