Platelets, also called thrombocytes (thromb- + -cyte, blood clot cell), are a component of blood whose function (along with the coagulation factors) is to stop bleeding by clumping and clotting blood vessel injuries.
Milk of the poppy is essentially the Westeros version of morphine. Maesters make it from crushed poppy flowers, and morphine and other opiate-based drugs are made from poppy plants. Indeed, the books' descriptions strongly suggest that the poppy is intended to be the real-world opium poppy (Papaver somniferum).
Once poppy seeds are eaten, the body develops detectable levels of opiates almost immediately. As a 2003 âMythBustersâ episode notes, someone can test positive for opiates as soon as 2 hours after eating a poppy seed-loaded item. Other studies have shown that the levels remain elevated for up to 3 days. School athletes may want to pay attention to this.