BRIEF HISTORY OF BETEL NUT USE
The first instances of betel nut stained teeth are documented in the Philippines.Â
Betel nut use, now common in Southeast Asia, begins to spread west to Malenisa and Micronesia.
The first European contact in Micronesia report betel nut chewing amongst indigenous peoples.
1500 AD to 1900—Betel nut production and use continued to grow in South Asia and Southeast Asia, with India becoming the world’s largest producer and consumer.
The first scientific report linking betel nut chewing to oral cancers appears in the British Medical Journal in 1924.
In the early 1950’s, U.S. medical services based in the Pacific begin studying the consequences of chronic betel nut use amongst indigenous populations.
By the 1990s, India, the world’s largest producer of betel nut, is producing 250,000 metric tons of betel nut per year.
By 2002, there is an estimated 600 million betel nut users worldwide.
In 2012, the World Health Organization recognizes betel nut chewing as a public health emergency in Asia and the Pacific.Â
By 2020, India is producing over 1 million tons of betel nut. Also this year, a record 173 peer-reviewed studies analyzing the health impacts of betel nut chewing are published worldwide.
As of 2024, no federal legislation in the United States restricts the sale of betel nut. However, importation of areca nut in a form other than whole or carved kernels of nuts can be stopped at the discretion of US Customs officers on the grounds of food, agricultural, or medicinal drug violations. But such actions by Customs are very rare.
In Oregon, development of the Oregon Betel Education and Awareness Bill (HB3511) begins. If signed into law, the legislation would require betel nut education and awareness training for healthcare institutions and providers.Â