Of all plants opium poppy, Papaver somniferum is used in the field of medicine, none has been widely employed nor save as many lives and suffering. This plant and its derivatives have been used since ancient times.
Several Narcotics are collectively known as opiates, derive from opium mainly morphine, there are fifty alkaloids are present in opium poppy and the opium poppy is the source of first medicinal compound ever isolated in pure form. That alkaloid morphine was isolated in 1804 by German pharmacist Friederich Serturner. He dubbed the alkaloid morphium, to induce sleep.
Morphine is the most effective and pain-relieving agent in medicine, acting directly upon the central nervous system. When someone is suffering debilitating pain, especially due to injury or surgical procedures, no other substance will relieve pain as well or as quickly.
The second most abundant alkaloid in the opium poppy is codeine, which also possesses pain-relieving properties. Codeine is most widely used as cough relieving agent and is now available only by prescription, as it is both psychoactive and habit-forming.
The opium poppy yields sticky latex that has been employed since antiquity as a mind-altering drug. The latex is prepared in large balls and can be stored for long periods of time. Today, large-scale cultivation of opium poppies for the production of heroin can be found in Mexico, Afghanistan, and throughout Asia. Oddly, heroin was first developed by drug giant Bayer as a cure for morphine addiction. Today there is relatively little morphine addiction, though an estimated 9 million people globally are now addicted to heroin. Technically it is illegal to grow opium poppies in the U.S., are popular ornamental flowers grown widely in America and Canada. Opium poppies are controlled according to the Controlled Substances Act.
The opium poppy, with its globe-shaped seed pod and beautiful flower petals, makes an impressive site, especially when there are thousands of flowering poppies all in one place. It has seen large fields of poppy in Morocco, and the sight is breathtaking and critically valuable to the field of medicine, opium occupies a rare and important place in the human story.