Poppy Seed Ingestion and Opiates Urinalysis: A Closer Look

Abstract

Review of scientific literature shows that ingestion of poppy seed containing products can result in a positive urinalysis test for opiates. In many cases the amount of seeds ingested is unrealistically high or is not specified. This study is designed to correlate the amount of seeds ingested with the urinary concentration of total morphine as a function of time. Two males and two females were involved in all four protocols, which were separated by at least one week. Subjects ingested one, two, or three poppy seed rolls, each containing 2 g of Australian seeds (108 micrograms morphine/g seed) in three protocols. In the fourth protocol subjects ingested two rolls per day for four consecutive days. Urine specimens were collected for 48 h after ingestion, analyzed by RIA, EMIT, and TDx, and selected samples were confirmed by GC/MS. The data show that the highest concentrations of total morphine in urine were found 3-8 h after ingestion or in the first-void samples. Of the 264 samples collected, there were only 16 specimens that exceeded 300 ng/mL by any of the methods used for analysis with only three samples exceeding 400 ng/mL by GC/MS (406, 611, and 954 ng/mL). In all cases, the total opiates level was less than 150 ng/mL 24 h after ingestion. Following these studies, one of the subjects ingested a poppy seed cake containing 15 g seed obtained from a bakery which analyzed for 169 micrograms morphine/g seed. Urine specimens were collected over 48 h, and all specimens were analyzed by GC/MS.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Summer Research Program - 1996. Summer Faculty Research Program. Final Reports. Volume 2B, Armstrong Laboratory

“…(3) attempt to identify the source of the alkaloid ingested by comparing the relative amounts of morphine and codeine excreted in the urine as suggested by Yong and Lik (1977) and ElSohly et al(1990). The conditions to rule out poppy seed ingestion as formulated by ElSohly et al (1990) are: (a) codeine levels exceeding 300ng/ml (b) morphine-codeine ratio of less than 2 (c) 1000ng/ml morphine with no codeine detected (d) morphine levels in excess of 5000ng/ml. (e) presence of 6-monoacetylmorphine.…”

“…(c) The effects of acute ingestion of poppy seed pastries on the urinary excretion of morphine and codeine has been extensively reported ( Fritschi and Prescott Jr,1985;Hayes et al,1987;Pettitt et 41-4 al.,1987;Struempler,1987;ElSohly et al, 1988;ElSohly and Jones,1989;ElSohly and ElSohly, 1990;Selavka, 1991;Carpenter, 1994;Huestis and Cone, 1995). This data provides information on the maximum excretion of these two alkaloids following a one time ingestion.…”

Addiction and Substance Abuse in Anesthesiology

“…When a positive test is attributable to the ingestion of poppy seeds, specific ratios of codeine to morphine can be identified. 91 Still, recovering addicts are advised to avoid the consumption of poppy seeds. In addition to dietary causes, non-prescription medications may also result in misleading positive results.…”

Poppy seed consumption and toxicological analysis of blood and urine samples

“…It is known for quite some time that the consumption of food products containing poppy seeds can lead to positive opiate urine test results [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. As a consequence, warnings exist advising not to consume poppy seed products prior to undergoing a urine drug test [11].…”