Betel nut is called a "soft poison". What are the main hazards of bombs used by 60 million Chinese people?

Betel nut is the betel nut fruit produced on the betel nut tree. Freshly picked betel nut, oval, green, also known as "green fruit". The "green fruit" is divided into two halves, the core is removed, lime wrapped in lily flowers (called palm leaves when sold) is added, and a series of processes such as processing, slicing, braising, and drying are added. The betel nut that everyone often eats is made.

For a long time, people believed that this fruit could dispel the "miasma" in southern China, but by the Song Dynasty, betel nut played the role of a hobby. Everyone chews betel nut for pleasure, especially in Lingnan regions such as Hainan and Guangdong, and this habit has continued. Today, the number of betel nut consumers in China has exceeded 60 million.

The dangers of betel nut

If you chew betel nut for a long time, it will also directly cause wear and tear on your teeth, turning them black and yellow like cigarettes. Commonly known as "betel nut teeth".

Betel nut contains a large amount of alkaloids, which are the main active substances of areca nut. The alkaloids with the highest content in areca nut are arecoline and arecoline, as well as some polyphenols and arecotannins. Arecoline and arecotannins are cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic.

Normally, oral mucosal cells will automatically renew, and those old cells will fall off and die, but arecoline breaks this balance of life and death, prompting epithelial cells to undergo apoptosis in a short period of time, and interacts with arecoline Betel nut and lime chewed together also have certain genotoxicity. Long-term chewing of betel nut may cause oral submucosal fibrosis. The so-called oral submucosal fibrosis is an oral mucosal disease with a tendency to become cancerous. They usually feel dry mouth. , and at the same time, symptoms such as pain, progressive restriction of mouth opening, and difficulty in swallowing food will occur due to food stimulation when eating.

The most serious thing is the development of oral cancer. Unlike other cancers, once oral cancer occurs, patients are not only waiting for chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Their tongue and oral mucosa will ulcerate, resulting in The severe pain makes it impossible for them to swallow food. In this way, people cannot eat normally and can only rely on liquid food and nutrient solutions to maintain their lives. (The purpose of posting this photo is to make everyone realize how serious the harm of betel nut is to the human body)

Betel nut residue also irritates the gastric wall, which can lead to inflammation of the gastric mucosa or even perforation. Pregnant women who often chew betel nut will experience abnormal blood pressure and increased blood volume, which will lead to reduced fetal blood volume and insufficient supply of nutrients, affecting the health of the fetus and even causing fetal malformations.

Because of its high addictiveness, it is a major cause of oral cancer and seriously endangers people's oral health. In India, the largest consumer of betel nut, the incidence rate of oral cancer ranks first in the world. In Papua New Guinea, an island country with a population of only 7 million, 60% of residents chew betel nut, and the prevalence of oral cancer is as high as 2 in 1,000 people. Betel nut has also become a Class 1 carcinogen recognized by the World Health Organization.

In India, where betel nut is popular, commercially produced betel nuts have been required to bear obvious warning labels, just like "Smoking is harmful to health." In the United States, the transportation of betel nut between states has been strictly prohibited since 1976. In Canada, the sale of betel nut products is directly prohibited.

In 2019, China stipulated that all betel nut production companies in Hunan should stop all domestic advertising from now on. But in the past two years, betel nut advertising has made a resurgence.

Many people who eat betel nut are not aware of the harmful effects of betel nut, but some people are arguing that it is beneficial to eat less betel nut, and it can also refresh the mind. The reason why they feel refreshed is Because arecoline is a muscarine

(M) receptor agonist, it can excite M-choline receptors, increase intestinal motility, increase the secretion of digestive juices, and increase appetite. Glandular secretion increases. At the same time, arecoline can also act on N-choline receptors to excite skeletal muscles and ganglia.

However, while betel nut promotes nerve excitation, it can also increase the release of endogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone, induce human nerve cells to produce wrong reactions, and cause nerve cells to produce reactive oxygen species and other toxic substances. It destroys the normal function of nerve cells and even causes nerve cell death, making people unresponsive and numb. Therefore, betel nut is also called a "soft drug".

In addition, there is a large amount of literature showing that the toxic effects of arecoline also exist in the reproductive system of animals or humans. It may inhibit the motility of sperm and reduce the number of embryos implanted.

In the processing of betel nut, some other harmful factors are also introduced. For example, during the processing of betel nut, companies add additives such as maltose, cinnamon oil and other flavors and fragrances to improve the palatability of betel nut.

In summary, chewing betel nut is more a matter of individual choice. It is not like environmental pollution that affects a group of people, but an individual who suffers from the disease, suffers pain, and even dies. It can be said that betel nut has become a bomb and nightmare for 60 million people!

Why not ban it?

The most embarrassing thing about betel nut is that its chemical composition allows it to have certain pharmacological effects and can be used to treat some diseases. Its identity should be a drug. , but now, it stands beside us as food.

As a long-term chewing hobby for the general population, it cannot be recognized as food from science or relevant regulations. In addition to being used as medicinal materials, the betel nut processing industry is obviously in a very embarrassing position.

In summary, what is wrong is not the betel nut, but what exactly it appears as.

Although many people say that talking about toxicity regardless of dose is a hooliganism. Once or twice once in a while it does not have much impact, but we should add a label on betel nut packaging that "excessive amounts of betel nut can cause cancer", just like the tobacco industry. , in a prominent position on the packaging shell,

"Excessive amounts of betel nut can easily cause cancer", just like "Smoking causes cancer", has become basic knowledge and is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. But not only do some brands not do this, some brands even print advertising slogans on their betel nut packaging bags saying it is chewy and does not cause wounds. This is what we should oppose.

The country has also proposed that in areas with the habit of chewing betel nut, we should focus on the harm of long-term chewing of betel nut to oral health, carry out targeted publicity and education and oral health examinations, and promote periodontal and oral mucosal lesions. When the disease is diagnosed and treated early, we hope to vigorously publicize it to alert those who are unaware.