Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

Hello everyone,

I’m now in my mid 40’s and have been suffering from WED for more than 20 years and it seems to progressively be getting worse…

I have tried an endless number of non-pharmacological solutions and a few pharmacological solutions and have never had any great success with anything until I recently came across a post on another forum from someone who found poppy seed tea to be effective.

I googled it and found this on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy_tea

A small amount of dried poppy or poppy tea at night is an effective remedy for restless leg syndrome (RLS), and is superior to quinine, codeine alone, or clonidine for this purpose because of the presence of papaverine, a non-narcotic smooth-muscle relaxant which impacts vascular systems.[/color]

I decided to give it a try. The first night I tried it I had my first full night of solid sleep in years, and it has consistently worked since.

I am not sure whether the relief I am having is from the morphine or codeine content of the tea or the muscle relaxant compound called papaverine in the tea. I am just amazed at how well it is working for me personally.

I am having about 60 grams or 4 tablespoons about an hour before bed .. in about 200 ml of hot water with the juice of one lemon .. I then shake it vigorously for about 5 minutes and then drink the strained liquid.

At the same time, obviously there are side effects of ingesting small amounts of the opioid oils and I would love to know if there is some way of finding out how much morphine and codeine and papervine are found in poppy seeds and what effects this daily exposure would be having. I have been taking it for about 6 weeks and don’t seem to developing any tolerance, although on the odd occasion when I haven’t drunk the tea, my WED comes back in full force.

It has made such a phenomenal difference to my life, but I can’t understand why scientists aren’t researching it or why there isn't more information that is readily available.

Has any one else had any success with Poppy Seed tea?

Someone posted recently about ingesting poppy seeds. Haven't seen anyone talk of the tea. This seems very promising to me - we know that opioids work, so who knows what part of the substance is helping? It's very possible that the part that helps in available without the drugs.

I hope someone researches it. There isn't much money in researching non-pharma options - no one makes money. If I were independently wealthy, it's what I'd give my money to do!

It's a shame that there is so little research into it's use for RLS - it must be a great relief for you to have found something that works.
I did a little laymans research into possible side effects as my husband suffers from severe RLS and has had to stop using his regular drug.
Not to make anyone panic , but it may become addictive and in large doses it can cause death.
Used carefully it might provide relief, my husband may well try it sometime, but it's worth understanding any side effects upfront to make an informed choice and to help one decide on a safe dosage.

More on the subject:
http://icanhasscience.com/fun-stuff/che ... seed-cake/

Here is a very tragic and sad story:
http://www.poppyseedtea.com/

Ruby - this is indeed one of the problems when using non-pharma alternatives. There often is NO way of knowing how much of the "good" stuff is in something. The variance can be tremendous.

It would be really great to know the exact amounts of each of the constituents in the amount of poppy seed tea! It works so incredibly well for me and I don't seem to be developing any tolerance as yet .. I really hope it continues.

I am only using 60 grams or 4 tablespoons to make a tea a night (plus the juice of one lemon and 200 ml of water), which is a very small amount, compared to people on various drug forums who are using it recreationally.

The teenage boy that died apparently was believed to have used 3.5 pounds (1.6 kg) of poppy seeds in his tea preparation as on several previous occasions, which is massively higher than I am using. On the forums that are using huge doses for a very different purpose.

It would be fantastic if someone could do some very thorough research though .. there seem to be others that have used it in different ways (cold with fruit juice) that have found great relief. I just wish there was more information.

Erika

Erika I really hope it continues to give you good results as well! Must be a huge relief for you.

The boy who died was using a huge dose and in perspective - any drug in large doses could create a life threatening situation.

That said, as Ann said it is still a problem to know just how much one is getting from dose to dose. Also to know if the body accumulates it over time or how long the half life is for clearance from the body.

The interesting thing is the effect of papavarine. I'm wondering if that might not work alone? Maybe people are a little like animals sometimes - a few weeks ago my husband suddenly started eating lot's of papaya as he had cravings for it. I never thought much of it as he loves fruit generally. Since taking codeine the craving seems to have stopped, it's been a while since I saw papaya in the house!

The other part of papaverine is that perhaps one should avoid other sources of it while on poppyseeds, just a thought.

All that in consideration it is still on my list as a possibility for my husband. Like you I just wish there was a lot more research on it. We can but hope!

I think I should point out what you all probably already know, that poppy seeds contain opioids, and the tea contains opioids. The amount will vary according to the variety of seed used. There are some amusing and not-so-amusing things to be read about the US government's attempts to keep people from realizing this (for instance, it seems to be illegal to plant poppies, only if you know that they contain opiates... not just if you intend to harvest it, but if you merely know. See http://michaelpollan.com/articles-archi ... made-easy/)

It would be best not to consider poppy seed tea as benign. It is actually a pharmaceutical, in some senses of the word (pharmaceutical means having to do with drugs; though other definitions seem to mean having to do with drugs sold at a pharmacy).

I tried the tea last night. I slept 7 hours straight. Didn't even wake up to pee. I don't remember the last time I slept that we'll.
And when I woke up my legs were fine and my usual back pain was gone. I think it must stay in the system for a while.
Erika- thank you for your post. I feel so refreshed today

Where can you find the seeds? I'm in small town America.

I just bought them at bulk barn. And most grocery stores have them.

I buy my poppy seeds from the site iHerb.com.

This is from Wikipedia and why I first tried the poppy seed tea:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy_tea

“A small amount of dried poppy or poppy tea at night is an effective remedy for restless leg syndrome (RLS), and is superior to quinine, codeine alone, or clonidine for this purpose because of the presence of papaverine, a non-narcotic smooth-muscle relaxant which impacts vascular systems, but withdrawal from the narcotic constituents of the tea, mainly codeine and morphine, will paradoxically cause RLS ("kicking" the habit).”

I’m a little worried about tolerance and addiction though.

Has anyone come across this theory that WED is an endorphin deficiency?

I came across this on a forum in Australia:

http://forum.rls.org.au/viewtopic.php?f ... 48a8#p1898

It would make sense, as the opiods, including poppy seed tea, seem to be effective for many people with WED.

Electroacupuncture has also been shown to stimulate endorphins and also the amino acid phenylalanine (especially DLPA, which is a combination of the D and the L forms of the amino acid phenylalanine) prevents the breakdown of the endorphins.

There is an interesting chapter on boosting endorphins in Julia Ross’s book “The Mood Cure”.

I would love to find a completely side-effect free solution and will keep researching!!

Erika

Has anyone come across this theory that WED is an endorphin deficiency?

There are a number of 'brain systems' known or thought to be involved in WED/RLS. Some studies have shown WED patients to have low iron in parts of the brain and in the cerebrospinal fluid. The fact that dopamine drugs relieve symptoms implicates the dopamine system, though studies haven't shown consistent abnormalities in the dopamine system in the parts of the brain examined for it. The fact that anti-histamines make WED worse implicates the histamine system. The endogenous opioid system is implicated in two ways: the fact that opioids relieve symptoms , and the fact that dissected brains contain 30-40% less endogenous opioids in WED patients than in controls. That was one study of only 5 brains, and only parts of those brains.

Endogenous opioids are the opioid molecules that our bodies manufacture naturally,and include endorphins, enkephalins, and others. We have endogenous cannabinoids too (similar to compounds in cannabis, or marijuana).

Clearly numerous inter-linked systems are involved, and very clearly one is the endogenous opioid system. I have some quotes that I posted a year or so ago, that I found useful in convincing my GP that opioids actually stopped the symptoms. - she thought it was just distracting me or something ~~(

Fascinating study badnights! i know that opiod class has always worked well for me as some of the other WED drugs don't. I think I'm going to check this tea out

It might be a good option. You will be both doctor and patient. Pay attention to other drugs you're taking, and dosage of the tea. The effective ingredient for RLS/WED is undoubtedly the opioids it's known to contain.

I have looked all over at various tea and herb shops, but can't find poppy seed tea. Can any one tell me where they found this?