The sleep poppy originating from the eastern Mediterranean area (somniferum), also seed poppy mentioned, is a one year's bloom plant high to 1.5 m, whose seed is used as food as well as for the In addition the plant leads a morphinhaltigen milk, of which Opium is made. Latin name "“somniferum"” refers to the use as sleeping drug for children in the Greek antique one. Exist numerous breed sorts, which differ among other things by content and composition of the alkaloids.

The plant

The round, overflowing becomes large to over 1 m. The relatively large blooms have one cup, which drop when blossoming, as well as four white to violet petals, which on slim, haarigen handles to stand. Bloom time is from May to August. The bloom is dusted usually already after few days completely and throws then its petals off. The spherical fruit caps contain numerous seeds. Steel-blue seeds are most similar to the game form. Whitish seeds contain fewer oils and for flour production are used. A race with grey seeds is popular in Austria. The blooms of Ziermohnrassen can be different colour and possess more than four petals.

Origin & history

The ancestors of the sleep poppy are unknown and are the same as those of the "“bristle poppy"” (P resident in the western Mediterranean area. somniferum ssp. setigerum). The use of the sleep poppy as a useful plant is proven in south Europe since the Jungsteinzeit (starting from approx. 6000 v.Chr.). Poppy belongs thereby to our oldest cultivated plants. He was mentioned in writing for the first time around 4000 v. Chr. in cuneiform scripts, in which the production of pharmaceutical products of sleep poppy is described.

The Sumerer called the sleep poppy "“plant of the joy"”; from the old Greece archaeological finds occupy that the Greeks Opium for ritual and the medical purpose used. The poppy cap was the symbol for Morpheus, the God of the dream, for Thanatos, the God of death, and for Nyx, the goddess of the night. In Egypt Opium mixtures up to approximately 1800 v. Chr left themselves. retrace. The Egyptians stored their Opium in special containers, the Bibil jugs. In the Roman realm the sleep poppy came into the doubtful rank of a prosperity drug. With a stocktaking of the imperial palace in the year 214 altogether 17 tons of Opium were discovered. Starting from approximately 1100 also the Chinese cultivate the sleep poppy for medical purposes. The early Christianity, which saw a punishment of God in an illness, forbade in 4. Century the use of Opium as pain-satisfying means. Karl the large one renewed this prohibition 810, poppy juice was considered as sowing to work. With the Arab medicine Opium returned to Europe.

From different antique writings it follows that one can win the Meconium from pressed out plants. Meconium is in its effect more weakly than Opium, however likewise than sleep and cures was used.

The extraordinary meaning, which had the discovery of the Opiums for humans from at that time, is today well comprehensible. For the first time means were to the welfare art at the disposal, which pain satisfied and many medical interferences for the patient more bearable or made only possible.

Poppy as food

The pleasantly and nussig smelling seed of the sleep poppy is used as food particularly for sweet foods and pastry. The most well-known prescriptions like the poppy cake, poppy Kliessla or originate from the area Schlesien. From there they arrived to Austria, which is considered as classical area of cultivation of poppy. The Austrian kitchen is particularly rich therefore at poppy prescriptions.

Poppy seed supplies the high-quality poppy oil with a fat content from 40 to 50 per cent by cold pressing. In Japan poppy is used also in spice mixtures. Furthermore it is used as feed as well as in pharmacy.

There is available white, grey and blue to blue-black Mohnsaaten. The white sorts originates mostly from India, the blue sorts acted with us originate mostly from Turkey, from Tschechien, Hungary and Australia. In Germany about 8000 tons of poppy seed are processed annually. For the sperm collection excluding sleep poppy one uses, because are considered other to poppy places than a little productive or unwholesome.

With a calcium content of 2475 mg per 100 g poppy seed is one of our calcium-richest food. Poppy is in addition richly of B-Vitaminen.Der morphine content of poppy seeds is usually however very small (0.005%) and health without heistation, can lead however after the benefit from poppy-rich meals to positive drug tests. In a study of the Federal institut for risk evaluation (BfR; vgl. Related links) it was stated that increasingly contaminated poppy places (up to 0,06%) are acted. The reason lies apparently in new harvesting methods, with which the poppy caps are squeezed and thus milk withdraws. It is to be assumed limit values are specified shortly for morphine, which decide on the negotiableness.

Poppy as drug

Further products of the sleep poppy are the 40 different alkaloids, among them morphine and Codein contained in the white milk. The most important alkaloids are morphine, Codein, Papaverin, Noscapin (= narcotine), Thebain and Narcein. Morphine, Codein and Thebain are Morphinanderivate. Narcotin, Papaverin and Narcein against it are Benzylisochinolinalkaloide. A large part lies as salt with the bound forwards (so-called Mekonate). Heroin (a development of the company Bayer) is based on the contents contents of morphine.

Matured fruit caps contained compared with green more Codein and fewer morphines. From dried and finely vermahlenen fruit caps can be prepared for medical dte. In drinking alcohol (ethanol) morphine separates substantially better than in water, so that strong Tinkturen can be manufactured.

For the production of Opium however the still green poppy caps swollen already thickly are angeritzt in parts in the evening hours. In the following morning hours the dried, brown discoloured milk of the arranged milk tubes - the Rohopium - by scraping off won. This procedure is several times repeated, until the fruit cap is evenly vernarbt. A cap supplies approx. 20 to 50 mg Rohopium, which contain 3 to 23% morphine.

Manufactured by fermentation, camps, cooking and roasting the characteristically sweetly smelling (Chandu), whose morphine content is reduced. Another sort Rauchopium is manufactured by water solution and filtrative separation of the Latex' and wax.

From chemical Derivatisierung (acetylating --> acid ester formation) of morphine heroin (dia. morphine, Diacetylmorphin) results, which 3 - to 6-fache analgetische (pain-satisfying) effect of morphine possesses.

The illegal main cultivation areas of sleep poppy lie in Afghanistan as well as in Southeast Asia (golden triangle). Legal cultivation for medical purposes is operated mainly in India, Turkey and countries of the former Soviet republics.

See also Opiumkriege!

Therapeutic employment

Morphine is used to the pain fight with strong pain, like tumors, as well as with chronic pain of different origin, in addition, when uses drug. Morphine is not suitable with Gallen and kidney colic attacks for the pain satisfying. Morphine makes psychologically and physically dependent. In overdosing of morphine death (lethal dose) begins by breath depression. Codein is only 1/6 to 1/12 as analgetisch effectively as morphine and as Antitussivum with strong dry cough is used. Noscapin and Narcein are not pain-satisfying and possess like Codein a antitussive effect, which is however weaker. Further Noscapin and Narcein are weak contrary to morphine breath-energizing and bronchodilatatorisch. Papaverin applied with cramps of the stomach, the Gallenblase, the intestine and the urinary passages, also with kidney colic attacks. Opiumtinktur was used up in former times both with stomach intestine cramps, failure and when mental suffering often, because of the look for-producing effect today however hardly still.

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