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Service members may want to hold off ordering that “everything” bagel.
It’s not an urban legend: Eating poppy seeds can cause diners to test positive for codeine on a urinalysis, Defense Department officials said in a memo released yesterday.
“Recent data suggests certain poppy seeds varieties may have higher codeine contamination than previously reported,” said Gilbert R. Cisneros Jr., the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. “Consumption of poppy seed products could cause a codeine-positive urinalysis result and undermine the department’s ability to identify illicit drug use.”
This comes as something of a surprise for the department. At one point, some meals ready-to-eat contained lemon poppy seed cake, and dining facilities often served poppy seed salad dressing.
Officials became aware of the problem in 2022 and have worked to review the “limited scientific studies and also contracted with an independent laboratory to have the codeine and morphine contamination of multiple poppy seed brands analyzed,” officials said. “The analysis and other recently published studies were the catalyst for the warning regarding poppy seeds.”
The poppy seed memo calls on the Army, Navy and Air Force to notify service members “to avoid consumption of all poppy seeds, including food products and baked goods containing poppy seeds.” Bagels, rolls, salads and salad dressing are the most common foods with poppy seeds, but there are many other foods where poppy seeds are used as spice. Many foods contain poppy seeds in the Balkans, the Middle East, and central and eastern Europe.
It’s possible that some service members have been disciplined or discharged for “innocent or unknown ingestion” of poppy seeds, an official said. “We are currently working that analysis and focusing on codeine-only positive tests from fiscal year 2019 to present,” the official continued. “This timeline is based on currently available information. The amount of poppy seeds consumed, concentration of codeine detected in urine and time of consumption relative to the drug test are also important factors. As we gather more information, we will reassess and update, as appropriate.”
In his memo, Cisneros said service members should work with their local legal office for any related concerns with urinalysis results.
