What are traditional patterns of drug consumption?

by heshl

Specifically, that of the opium poppy and cannabis. How far back does it date? And what are the routes of administration? Common sense would tell me that they would be consumed as part of food or in a tea(I'm aware poppy tea is a traditional remedy, and bhang lassi is popular to this day in india), rather then smoked.

What's the geographical extent of these drugs? They both are quite hardy plants, so I'm under the impression that they spread readily, but I'm not an expert in these matters. Just to be clear, I'm asking about pre-industrial drug consumption, though stuff regarding the era of patent medicines and such is interesting as well.

In addition, has there been any historical revisionism from the past century of anti-drug crusades?

keyilan

Not to discourage additional answers, but you may be interested in the fairly extensive section on drug use in the FAQ.