THE poppy is a flower that can mean false passion, dream, extravagance, fertility and resurrection.
This plant belongs to the family Papaveraceae and the best known and most cultivated species is the Papaver somniferum L., also known as poppy, which is used to obtain the opium. The flower of this plant can be white, pink, purplish or red.
The poppy is strongly linked to opium, as this is the latex of the poppy fruit while it is not yet ripe. This latex is quite similar to that of the rubber tree, however it has different properties, and the one extracted from the poppy contains morphine, codeine, papaverine and other substances.
Poppy in cooking
The poppy seed is often used in cooking. Many people think that the use of poppy seed is illegal in Brazil, which is not true. Opium is removed from the plant while it is still green, while seeds are extracted when the plant is already dry. Even so, in Brazil, the sale of poppy seeds is controlled by ANVISA through Resolution RDC No. 239, of August 28, 2002. In other words, the seed is not prohibited, but knowing that there are many bureaucracies that importers have to comply with, imports to Brazil have decreased. However, large-scale planting of the poppy species is prohibited on Brazilian soil.
Poppy seeds are often used in salads, pastas, breads, cakes, pies, fruit salad, jams, cookies, among many other things. It should be noted that consumption of poppy seeds can lead to a false positive for the presence of opium in a drug detection test.
poppy in medicine
The poppy has been used for medicinal purposes for many years. In Mesopotamia, for example, a tea made with poppy was used to treat insomnia and constipation. Some time later the Babylonians and Assyrians used poppy sap to produce medicine. The father of medicine, Hippocrates, was among the first to record the medicinal effects of this plant. Some authors believe that a Greek physician used opium on gladiators in Rome. This substance gained popularity in Europe in the early 16th century, but its spread was controlled by the Catholic Church. Around this time, a poppy juice-based formula was created by Swiss physician Paracelsus. The belief that this remedy - laudanum - cured various diseases and even had the power of rejuvenation, made opium even more famous throughout the world.
In 1803, Friedrich Sertürner invented morphine after researching and observing the varied effects of opium. This was not only the first alkaloid to be extracted from opium, it was the first alkaloid to be extracted from a plant.
