Is betel nut called the "devil fruit"? But some people still can't quit it

Many people must have seen the "Selling Betel Nut" sign at the door of the store, but have never seen it in person. After all, if you haven't tasted it, you won't think of buying it. Therefore, it has entered the public's field of vision again, and it is related to "oral cancer".

Betel nut snacks on the market

In this situation, many people realized that this thing can be chewed repeatedly like chewing gum, but compared to chewing gum, its taste is longer-lasting and more addictive.

Nowadays, people often refer to betel nut as the "devil fruit", and although its price is rising, it still cannot stop betel nut lovers from buying it. According to rough statistics, about 60 million Chinese people cannot give it up and are still struggling in the abyss. So, is betel nut culture a modern phenomenon? Why is it called the "devil fruit"?

Fresh betel nut

Popular "betel nut culture"

As an evergreen tree of the tropical palm family, betel nut is a true tropical plant, and its survival is restricted by the geographical environment. The part people chew is mainly the fruit of betel nut, which is oval in shape and orange-red in color, and does not look very "delicious".

Many people think that betel nut became popular only in modern times, but in fact, as early as the period of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty, betel nut was regarded as a "rare and exotic wood" and was presented to the Fuli Palace in Guanzhong.

After that, betel nut appeared in many historical books. In the Song Dynasty, Hainan had become the main production area of ​​betel nut.

Fan Chengda's Guihai Yuhengzhi states that in Hainan, "the mountains are full of betel nut and coconut palm trees." Zhou Qufei's Lingwai Daida states that "betel nut grows in Lidong, Hainan, and is also produced in Jiaozhi." And Zhufanzhi states that in Hainan, "betel nut and jibei are the only ones that thrive.

Villagers in Qionghai, Hainan are picking betel nuts

In addition, people discovered the "magical uses" of betel nut very early, and since then they have developed the habit of chewing betel nut. This shows that betel nut culture was born very early and gradually became an indispensable thing in the lives of some people.

According to survey data in 2014, about 700 million people around the world are consuming betel nut in different forms. This number is indeed astonishing.

Is betel nut like "chewing gum"?

In terms of distribution areas, they are mainly concentrated in South Asia, Southeast Asia and islands in the Pacific Rim. In addition to being very suitable for the growth of betel nut, these areas also have a long history of betel nut culture.

Under such circumstances, betel nut consumption is accepted by people of all ages, and women and children in some countries use betel nut. There are also many people who consume betel nut in my country, but they are not distributed over a large area, but concentrated in local areas.

Hunan betel nut culture carries the memories of generations

This is also why many people feel "both strange and familiar" with betel nut, because the number of people who consume betel nut in most areas is very small.

Statistics from 2015 show that about 10% (about 2 million) of the population in Taiwan, China, have the habit of eating betel nuts. In some parts of Hunan, such as Xiangtan City, the prevalence of eating betel nuts is as high as 64.5%~82.7%. One-third of the population in Hainan Province eats betel nuts, which is a higher proportion than in Taiwan.

For northerners, betel nut is still relatively unfamiliar

In general, although the sales of betel nut in my country are somewhat "polarized", the proportion of people chewing betel nut is indeed very high. And from many previous news reports related to betel nut, the number of people eating betel nut is on the rise, and the incidence of related diseases is also increasing year by year.

So, why is betel nut called the devil fruit? What kind of harm can it bring to the human body?

Composition of the top 10 cancers in Hunan Province in 2019

Why is betel nut called the "devil fruit"?

The reason why betel nut is so popular is mainly because of its special taste. Many people who have chewed it say that it is very refreshing. Indeed, according to scientists' research, chewing betel nut does have a stimulant-like effect, which can improve people's attention and make people feel "full".

However, no matter how many advantages it has, they cannot cover up the fatal flaw of betel nut, which is that it is a carcinogen.

Arecoline can stimulate the secretion of adrenaline and make people excited

Some people may think this is alarmist, but experts have long confirmed in animal experiments that betel nut chewing can induce oral cancer or oropharyngeal cancer, and even the International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified betel nut chewing as a Class 1 carcinogen.

If you have seen the faces of people who chew betel nuts all year round, you will find that their mouths seem to have been deformed. When they open their mouths, their teeth are so black that it makes people feel sick, and there are many traces of surgery on their faces.

This is because long-term betel nut chewing can lead to cancer or related diseases. In order to survive, some parts of the body have to be removed. As for where to remove, it depends on the location of the malignant tumor.

Studies have found that the incidence of oral cancer in betel nut chewers who have smoking and drinking habits is 123 times that of the normal population.

The oral cancer incidence rate in Hunan Province is higher than the national average

Therefore, a good face is "completely changed" by betel nut. But even so, there are still about 60 million people who are addicted to the pleasure brought by betel nut.

It turns out that betel nut has planted the seeds of addiction as early as the first time people chewed it. It makes people unable to leave it even if it is painful, until it eventually drags addicts into the abyss of death.

Betel nut has created a large number of "face-cutting people"

In addition to inducing various cancers, chewing betel nuts can also cause other diseases and have adverse effects on people's health. For example, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, etc. These diseases are often easy to find people who chew betel nuts.

In addition, even if you just chew betel nuts, this habit will affect the reproductive system. For men, the sperm health of men who like to chew betel nuts is obviously problematic, and they look dying and have no vitality.

Betel nut is more harmful than you might think

It is worth mentioning that although betel nut is obviously addictive and carcinogenic, its price has skyrocketed with the demand, and many merchants who produce betel nut have made a lot of money.

But the rising prices cannot stop people from buying it. After all, when chewing betel nut becomes a habit, you will always feel like something is missing without it in your mouth.

Schematic diagram of China's betel nut market demand

And from the food bags of betel nut today, we can see such a warning: "Long-term excessive chewing is harmful to oral health", but its essence is actually similar to the "smoking is harmful to health" on cigarette boxes. People who really buy it and rely on it will obviously not change because of a slogan.

However, judging from the history of betel nut in China, there is still a long way to go before it can be completely changed. After all, in many regions, there are traditional betel nut customs, and betel nut often occupies an important position in people's lives.

Warning words on betel nut packaging bag

Betel nut custom in China

When we introduced the betel nut culture in the above article, we mentioned that betel nut had been introduced to China as early as the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were written records of "chewing betel nut", and from the records, betel nut was used to entertain guests at that time.

Of course, in addition to being used for chewing, betel nut also has an important position in Chinese herbal medicine due to its extremely high medicinal value. From this point of view, it is indeed not a real "devil fruit" and has brought many benefits to mankind.

Betel nut slices used as traditional Chinese medicine

Compared with the current custom of eating betel nuts, betel nuts in ancient times had a much higher status and were often used as wedding souvenirs, because the ancients believed that the word betel nut had a good meaning, "Ben is composed of the character Bin, Lang is composed of the character Lang, which means that the woman is a guest to the man, implying that the husband and wife respect each other like guests." I believe that many people have never heard of this explanation.

In addition to weddings, betel nut also plays an important role in the social activities of the rich and powerful. For example, in the 64th chapter of A Dream of Red Mansions, there is a scene where Jia Lian asks for betel nut, which is enough to show that the nobles at that time liked betel nut very much, and many of them were addicted.

The purse containing betel nuts in A Dream of Red Mansions

Many researchers pointed out that the current price of betel nut is actually lower than in history, because at that time due to the demand of the nobility, the price of betel nut was once raised to a level that ordinary people could not afford.

In this case, people with the habit of chewing will look for substitutes everywhere, such as red vine, betel nut, etc., which are not betel nut, but cheap substitutes.

Caprine is often used for medicinal purposes

In summary, my country's betel nut culture can actually be regarded as having a long history. However, a long history does not mean that it is necessarily right. From the perspective of modern medicine, chewing betel nut is indeed harmful, so we cannot use tradition as a shield, but we must find a way to get rid of this bad habit!

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