U.S. Army soldier accepts a slice of a Polish poppy seed cake during a school holiday party at the Powidz primary school on Dec. 12, 2023. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jason Hull) A new Army regulation is advising soldiers to avoid eating foods with poppy seeds over concerns that troops could inadvertently fail a drug screening.
While poppy seeds are often an ingredient in baked goods and pastries, they also — depending on how they are harvested and processed — can contain opium alkaloids such as morphine and codeine, which are Schedule II drugs with potential for abuse and are banned for service members to use under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
Much like the plot of an episode of the hit 1990s sitcom "Seinfeld" where Elaine fails a work drug test after eating poppy seed muffins, Army officials worry that ingesting foods with poppy seeds can lead to codeine showing up in a drug test.
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"Soldiers are encouraged to avoid consuming foods containing poppy seeds, as newer seeds variety may contain elevated levels of codeine," the updated regulation states. "Although drug testing laboratories have implemented additional measures to distinguish poppy seeds ingestion from codeine misuse, soldiers should make every effort to avoid these food products."
Spokespeople for the Army did not respond to questions sent to them Tuesday asking about the policy.
The Army’s new regulation follows a Department of Defense memo last year that shared a similar warning. Military.com previously reported the Pentagon became aware of the issue in 2022 and began investigating some codeine-positive drug screenings since 2019.
"Out of an abundance of caution, I find protecting service members and the integrity of the drug testing program requires a warning to avoid poppy seeds," Gil Cisneros, then the defense under secretary for personnel and readiness, wrote in the 2023 memo. "As more information becomes available, we will revise this policy accordingly."
Notably, the Army made some changes in January 2023 by suspending codeine reporting for the Military Personnel Drug Abuse Testing Program, according […]
Soldiers Warned to Avoid Eating Poppy Seeds in New Army Regulation Due to False Positive Drug Tests
