The most straightforward way to do this was simply to isolate the active components—what are called “alkaloids”—which include morphine, codeine, and thebaine. These alkaloids can then be further processed, however (for example, following a fairly simple recipe can turn extracted morphine into heroin). All of these drugs are “opiates,” which just means that they are derived (in some way) from the opium poppy. What makes opiates so powerful, however, is not the plant that they come from but, rather, the role they play in the brain.
