Areca Nut
- PMID:37043595
- Bookshelf ID: NBK590486
Areca Nut
Excerpt
Areca nut, commonly known as betel nut, is the fruit of the Areca palm (Areca catechu), which is found in tropical areas of the Pacific, south Asia and eastern Africa. The major use of areca nut is as a recreational stimulant typically chewed wrapped in betel leaves (Piper betle), powdered with calcium hydroxide (slaked lime), and flavored with mint, clove or tobacco. Areca nut has also been used as an extract in traditional medicine as a cathartic or as treatment of intestinal parasites. Areca nut has not been linked to cases of clinically apparent acute liver injury, but epidemiologic studies from Asia have found a strong link between habitual betel nut chewing and oral cancer, and it may also increase the risk of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.
References
- Zimmerman HJ. Unconventional drugs. Miscellaneous drugs and diagnostic chemicals. In, Zimmerman, HJ. Hepatotoxicity: the adverse effects of drugs and other chemicals on the liver. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott,1999: pp. 731-4.(Expert review of hepatotoxicity published in 1999; several herbal medications are discussed, but not betel nut or Areca catechu).
- Liu LU, Schiano TD. Hepatotoxicity of herbal medicines, vitamins and natural hepatotoxins. In, Kaplowitz N, DeLeve LD, eds. Drug-induced liver disease. 2nd ed. New York: Informa Healthcare USA, 2007, pp. 733-54.(Review of hepatotoxicity of herbal and dietary supplements [HDS] published in 2007; no mention of betel nut chewing or Areca catechu).
- Areca catechu. In, PDR for Herbal Medicines. 4th ed. Montvale, New Jersey: Thomson Healthcare Inc. 2007: pp. 19-26.(Compilation of short monographs on herbal medications and dietary supplements).
- Boucher BJ, Mannan N. Metabolic effects of the consumption of Areca catechu. Addict Biol. 2002;7:103–10. [ (Areca or betel nut chewing is an addictive behavior practiced by at least 10% of the world’s population, the active ingredients of Areca catechu being the arecal alkaloids, arecoline, arecaidine, guvacine and guvacoline which have cholinergic and psychoactive properties). ] - PubMed
- Tsai JF, Jeng JE, Chuang LY, Ho MS, Ko YC, Lin ZY, Hsieh MY, et al. Habitual betel quid chewing and risk for hepatocellular carcinoma complicating cirrhosis. Medicine (Baltimore) 2004;83:176–187. [ (In a cross sectional, case control study of 630 Taiwanese adults, a history of habitual betel nut chewing was more frequent among patients with hepatocellular carcinoma [25%] and patients with cirrhosis without cancer [16%], than in healthy controls [5%]). ] - PubMed
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