Too much poppy seed makes you high?
Seeds and kernels are full of healthy proteins, fibres, vitamins and minerals. So is poppy seed, small blue seed that has gained a lot of popularity in recent years through lemon poppy seed cake. It is said that you should not eat too much of poppy seeds. Why actually? Are poppy seeds harmful to health?
The small, blue seeds of the poppy are called poppy seeds. You have probably eaten it before, because poppy seeds are often used as a decoration on bread. In Germany and Austria, the mohntorte very popular, a cake with poppy seeds instead of flour. In the Netherlands you will mainly encounter poppy seeds in sweet dishes in combination with lemon, such as in a lemon poppy seed cake.
The pros and cons of poppy seeds
Poppy seeds are rich in fiber, antioxidants, B vitamins and minerals such as calcium and phosphorus. It also contains the phytonutrients oleic acid and linoleic acid. Both are healthy, monounsaturated fatty acids that are good for the heart and brain. All good qualities, but the seed also contains small amounts of opium. Morphine and heroin are also made from opium. However, this does not mean that eating poppy seeds can directly have the same effect as a standard morphine pill. For that, kilos of the blue seeds would have to be consumed.
Positive result in doping control
Despite the fact that they are small amounts, two grams of poppy seeds could already score a positive result in a doping control, according to research of the Cologne Sports College. One is not high, but the effect of poppy seeds can last for up to 48 hours and can be seen in the urine. It is therefore not recommended for athletes to eat bread rolls with poppy seeds for breakfast.
According to Jaap Jamin of Addiction Care Institution Jellinek, a regular drug test can only give a positive result from 40 grams of poppy seeds. “You have to eat three loaves of bread or 25 muffins before you reach the 40 grams of poppy seeds,” he previously told Algemeen Dagblad. Even then you will not get high: that requires kilos of poppy seeds.
No worries
Those who regularly enjoy a poppy seed cake or pie or who like to bake bread rolls decorated with the blue seeds on the weekend, don’t have to worry about getting high from poppy seeds. Even if you eat a whole loaf of bread for Sunday brunch, you won’t experience any side effects of poppy seeds. But, as with almost everything, too much of anything is never advisable.
Nice to know
A fun fact for that weekend brunch: In 2008, the Netherlands was in 14th place among the largest poppy seed producers in the world. Turkey is at number one, followed by the Czech Republic. However, tastes differ, because the blue Dutch poppy seed is called the best poppy seed in the world by some culinary experts.
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