Betel Nut Chewing in South Asian Community - Risks & Perceptions

Areca or betel nut has long flourished throughout Asia.Thought to have originated on the Malay peninsula, it is the oldest used masticatory used by Asians .It is estimated that roughly 10-20 % of worlds population use it.This means that Areca nut consumption ranks fourth (behind cigarettes, alcoholic, beverages, and coffee) on the worlds most widely used central nervous system stimulants. Areca nut is used by an estimated 200-400 million people, mainly Indo Asian and Chinese. The Betel or Areca nut contains phenol compounds and alkaloids, and the mixture has both stimulant and tranquilizing pharmacological effects. From a medical point of view the most important consideration is the relation between Areca nut & the development of mouth cancer(Oral Squamous cell carcinoma) and its precursors leukoplakia and sub mucous fibrosis . Studies from Pakistan, India and China consistently showed that chewing of Areca nut was the major etiological factor for Oral Leukoplakia and Oral sub mucous fibrosis .