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Areca nut

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

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Areca nut is the seed Areca catechu, and it grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia and parts of East Africa

  • also called as betel nut and is often chewed wrapped inside betel leaves (paan) or with tobacco (betel quid), the composition of which varies in different populations and countries
    • not only known by several, sometimes local names, but also consumed in several forms, for example, pan masala, gutkha, mawa, dohra, kharra, betel and so on with or without tobacco

  • is one of the most widely consumed addictive substances in the world after nicotine, ethanol and caffeine, and is consumed by approximately 10% of the world's population. Many reports suggest that chewing areca nut starts at a young age, and it is being consumed freely by children (1)

  • the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified area nut consumption with or without tobacco as carcinogenic to humans (2)
    • linked to cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, liver and billary tracts and the uterus

Reference:

  • Garg A, Chaturvedi P, Gupta PC. A review of the systemic adverse effects of areca nut or betel nut. Indian J Med Paediatr Oncol. 2014;35(1):3-9. doi:10.4103/0971-5851.133702
  • Singh PK, Yadav A, Singh L, et al. Areca nut consumption with and without tobacco among the adult population: a nationally representative study from India. BMJ Open. 2021;11(6):e043987. Published 2021 Jun 15. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-043987

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