Nature's Pharmacy: Ancient Knowledge, Modern Medicine

Papaver somniferum
opium poppy

The poppy has a large botanical family (Papaveraceae) with 28 genera and over 250 individual species. Many varieties are cultivated: the bush and tree poppies, the Welsh poppy, the blue and Syrian tulip poppies, the alpine poppy, the sub-arctic Iceland poppy, and the Californian poppy. Even the opium poppy can be found in well-kept gardens, but this is illegal in most countries. Of all the species of poppies, only Papaver somniferum and Papaver bracteatum produce opium, but the latter is not used at present as a commercial drug source.

Native to Turkey and growing mostly in the temperate and sub-tropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere, the plant has a delicate beauty with a simple, often scarlet, white or purple blossom. When mature, it reaches between 90 and 150 centimeters in height with lobed, oblong leaves on the main stem between 10 and 40 centimeters long. Its four to six purple or white flowers are short-lived (2-4 days) with several stamens surrounding the ovary, a small, round pod the size of a large pea which grows rapidly to become the size of a small hen's egg. This pod is bluish green with a slightly waxy appearance, producing over 1000 seeds and opening in dry weather.

Papaver somniferum is an annual with a growth cycle of approximately 120 days. It requires a rich, well-cultivated soil and is likely to flourish in recently dug or plowed ground. Although it will grow in clay or sandy clay, the best soil is a sandy loam which retains nutrients and moisture and is not too hard for the delicate early roots to penetrate. Excessive rain is likely to reduce the opium-producing capabilities and direct sunlight, at least twelve hours daily, is especially important for growth. The poppy does not require irrigation, unless it is in danger of drying out, demands no expensive fertilizers, has few pests or ailments, and requires no insecticides or fungicides. Its seeds are sown naturally by the wind.

The opium poppy has two main products: poppy seeds and opium. The word "opium" is misleading, however, because it implies a single chemical compound while the substance is actually an elaborate mixture of sugars, proteins, ammonia, latex, gums, plant wax, fats, sulfuric and lactic acids, water, meconic acid and a wide range of alkaloids. Over fifty alkaloids have been identified in opium, the most important being morphine, from which heroin can be made, as well as noscapine, papaverine, codeine and thebaine. In its raw state, opium is an opaque, milky sap found throughout the plant, with its active ingredients only in the pod.

Legends and Folklore
The history of the opium poppy is replete with legends, folklore and spiritual connections. Ancient Greeks thought that poppies were a sign of fertility and, because the seeds were thought to bring health and strength, Greek athletes were given mixtures of poppy seeds, honey, and wine. Representations of the twin brothers Hypnos and Thanatos (Sleep and Death) showed them crowned with poppies or carrying poppies in their hands, demonstrating the Greek awareness that sleep induced by opium could lead to death. The Greeks also connected it to Hymnus, the god of rest and oblivion.

When opium was introduced into England by the Romans, Roman mythology linked it to Somnus, the god of sleep. Christianity, however, gave its symbolism a new twist, carving images of the plant into the benches of some medieval church pews to represent the belief that we rest in anticipation of the Last Day.

History
Humans have used the opium poppy since prehistoric times. Poppies have been found in Egyptian tombs dating back 3,000 years. Records indicate the use of the poppy to relieve suffering and produce euphoria since the time of Mesopotamia (5,000 to 4,000 B.C.E.). Homer's writings indicate Greek usage of the substance by 900 B.C.E. and Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.E.) made extensive use of medicinal herbs, including opium.

Despite its various and popular usage, the potentially fatal effects of opium were also known. Pliny (C.E. 23-79) gave in one breath a careful description of how to collect raw opium and in the next, issued a warning that "taken in too large quantities is productive of sleep unto death even." The 1st century Greek physician, Dioscorides, stated bluntly "being drunk too much...it kills." Once considered harmless by many, opium was, for most of its history, available to anyone. Doctors prescribed it to relieve a number of symptoms including diarrhea, cough and pain. In North India it was used as a traditional offering to guests in the form of opium water.

Although today we know that opiates can be swallowed, smoked, injected, sniffed, inhaled, or absorbed through mucous membranes, historically, there were only two ways to indulge in opium-to eat it and to smoke it. Opium in liquid solution may have been the first common method of ingestion. The modern technique of obtaining opium involves cutting the pods to allow the sap to ooze out. Prior to this, the whole poppy head was crushed and mixed with wine or honey and water. It was taken orally in India for over 1500 years. Poppy juice was diluted with water to make a refreshing drink, leading to the discovery of its narcotic effects, its ability to induce feelings of contentment and numb pain. In the 1600s, Turks ate opium for pleasure but disguised the bitterness with nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon or mace and served it with saffron or ambergris. It was also regarded as an aphrodisiac. Early smoking of opium was confined to China, the East Indies, and the eastern seaboard of Indo-China, particularly Vietnam and Taiwan. In China, opium addiction was a serious problem during the 17th century.

By the beginning of the nineteenth century, the tincture of opium, called laudanum, was as casually bought and used as aspirin is today. Poppy was even prescribed for children to stop their crying. During the Industrial Revolution and up until 1910, "Godfrey's Cordial," a patent medicine containing alcohol and opium, was very popular. Men thrown out of work by chaotic economic conditions found opium cheaper than food. A few coppers would buy the "cordial" that kept hungry children quiet. It took the later pure food and drug laws to remove this dangerous narcotic from patent medicines.

Smoking opium probably began sometime during the 16th century and it is still smoked today in northeast Burma, China, Laos and Thailand. Opium smoking is legal in the Middle East, where it is sold as sticks about the size of a hot dog sausage. Injection of the drug became popular in the middle of the 19th century.

Historical Uses

• To dull pain
• To induce state of euphoria or sleep
• To quiet crying children
• Recreational drug

Warnings
Opium is highly addictive and can be fatal in high doses.

Modern Medicinal Uses
Today, in technologically advanced nations, opium is not widely used but its derivatives and isolated alkaloids are. Twenty different alkaloids can be derived from opiates; those employed widely in the medical field today for relieving pain are morphine, and codeine, a milder form of morphine. Other manufactured alkaloid derivatives include dihydromorphine, dihydrocodeine and heroin, the latter being the main opiate of addiction. The addictive qualities are well known and the use of these drugs is stringently controlled by law and available by prescription only. For medicinal purposes, opiate analgesics are dispensed in the form of capsules, tablets, syrups, elixirs, solutions, and suppositories.