Britons heading to the United Arab Emirates have been warned that carrying some foodstuffs and common over-the-counter medications could warrant a four-year prison sentence.

Among the banned substances are foods containing poppy seeds; melatonin, which is taken to ease the effects of jetlag; codeine, a common ingredient in pain relief medication, and any trace of drugs such as cannabis, however small.

The warning was issued by the charity Fair Trials International, which assists people facing trials abroad, following a spate of arrests of visitors to Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The charity's chief executive Catherine Wolthuizen said: “We even have reports of the imprisonment of a Swiss man for 'possession’ of three poppy seeds on his clothing after he ate a bread roll at Heathrow.”

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Among the Britons arrested recently in Dubai for carrying banned substances is Grooverider, a Radio 1 DJ, who is facing up to four years in prison after Dubai customs officials reportedly found a small amount of cannabis in his record collection. His case has been adjourned until later this month.

In another case, a 43-year-old man from Middlesex was imprisoned earlier this week for four years after Dubai customs officials used highly sensitive screening equipment to detect 0.003g cannabis in the tread of his shoe. Keith Andrew Brown was stopped in transit from Ethiopia to London last September. The amount of the drug found on his shoe would not be visible to the naked eye and weighs less than a single grain of sugar.

Unlike many countries, the UAE will also arrest travellers found with traces of banned substances in their bodily fluids.

Ms Wolthuizen said: “What many travellers may not realise is that they can be deemed to be in possession of such banned substances if they can be detected in their urine or bloodstream, or even in tiny, trace amounts on their person."

Among the cases named by the chairty is that of Tracy Wilkinson, 45, from West Sussex, who was arrested at Dubai airport in 2005 for possession of codeine, which she had been taking for chronic back pain. She was held in custody for 8 weeks before officials accepted proof from her doctor of its use for prescribed medical purposes only.

For a full list of substances banned in the UAE, click here.

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