Editing Areca nut (section)

==Consumption ==
[[File:Ashoka betel Nut Pack.JPG|Areca nut in small packs in India|thumb]]
[[File:Areca nuts in China 01.jpg|Areca nuts as sold in [[Hainan]], China|thumb]]

===South Asia===
In India (the largest consumer of areca nut) and the rest of the [[Indian subcontinent]], the preparation of nut with or without betel leaf is commonly referred to as ''[[paan]]''. It is available practically everywhere and is sold in ready-to-chew pouches called ''pan masala'' or ''supari'', which is the dried form of the areca nut, as a mixture of many flavours whose primary base is dried areca nut crushed into small pieces. Poor people, who may eat only every other day, use it to stave off [[Hunger|hunger pangs]].<ref name=Javed-2010/><ref name=Collingham2006>{{cite book| last=Collingham| first=Lizzie | title=Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors| url=https://archive.org/details/curry00lizz| url-access=registration| year=2006| publisher=Oxford University Press| location=Oxford| isbn=978-0-19-988381-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/curry00lizz/page/7 7]}}</ref> ''Pan masala'' with a small quantity of tobacco is called ''[[gutka]]''. The easily discarded, small plastic ''supari'' or ''gutka'' pouches are a ubiquitous pollutant of the South Asian environment. Some of the liquid in the mouth is usually disposed of by spitting, producing bright red spots wherever the expectorate lands.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

In the [[Maldives]], areca nut chewing is very popular, but spitting is frowned upon and regarded as an unrefined, repulsive way of chewing. Usually, people prefer to chew thin slices of the dry nut, which is sometimes roasted. ''Killi'', a mixture of areca nut, betel, cloves, cardamom and sugar is sold in small home-made paper pouches. Old people who have lost their teeth keep "chewing" by pounding the mixture of areca nut and betel with a small mortar and pestle.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

===Southeast Asia===
In Thailand, the consumption of areca nut has declined gradually in the last decades. The younger generation rarely chews the substance, especially in the cities. Most of the present-day consumption is confined to older generations, mostly people above 50. Even so, small trays of betel leaves and sliced tender areca nut are sold in markets and used as offerings in Buddhist shrines.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

In the northern Philippines, particularly the [[Cordillera Administrative Region]], betel nut chewing remains prominent to the point that restrictions and fines have been established in urban areas such as [[Baguio|Baguio City]] in the [[Benguet]] province. These restrictions were made under the idea that ''momma'' or ''moma'' (betel nut) chewing and spitting are improper during public transportation drivers' work hours and are considered stains to the city roads and sidewalks.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gano |first=Hasreel |date=April 16, 2019 |title=Cordillera PUV drivers banned from chewing betel nut while on duty |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1067440 |access-date=November 20, 2023}}</ref> Despite these restrictions, betel nut thrives across the Cordilleran market. An example of its commerciality can be observed in [[Ifugao]], one of the provinces of the Philippine Cordilleras, where betel nuts are high-demand products sourced from the province's different cities and municipalities.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Latap |first=Nelson S. |date=June 2015 |title=Economic Assessment of Betel Nut (Areca cathecu) as Component in the Agroforestry (AF) Systems in Ifugao |journal=International Journal of Science and Research |volume=4 |issue=6 |pages=1896–1913 |url=https://www.academia.edu/71975264 |s2cid=21722318}}</ref>

In [[Bahasa Indonesia]], the betel nut is known as ''makan pinang'', while in the [[Papua Province]] of Indonesia, it is known simply as ''pinang''.<ref name=indonesia>{{cite web | title=Chewing Pinang a popular past time in Papua | website=Stichting Papua Erfgoed | url=https://www.papuaerfgoed.org/en/theme/chewing-pinang-popular-past-time-papua | access-date=2 November 2023}}</ref>

===Oceania===
[[File:Eating Pinang prohibited.jpg|Sign saying that chewing betel-nut is prohibited, at Sentani Airport, Jayapura, Papua Province, Indonesia|thumb]]
In [[Papua New Guinea]] (PNG), betel nuts are referred to in [[Tok Pisin]] as ''buai'', and grow abundantly on the northern coast, in [[Wewak]] and [[Madang]].<ref name=swanston2023>{{cite web | last1=Swanston | first1=Tim | last2=Gunga | first2=Theckla | title=Families from PNG's Manus province are losing their loved ones to the betel nut trade, with piracy posing a deadly risk | website=ABC News | date=5 October 2023 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-06/betel-nut-trade-png-deadly-risks-and-piracy/102886664 | access-date=2 November 2023}}</ref> A controversial ban on selling and chewing betel nut in public places in [[Port Moresby]], introduced in 2014 by the governor, was lifted in 2017. Because the popular nut continued to be smuggled in, prices rose dramatically. Police enforced the ban rigorously, and in 2015 two betel nut sellers died in [[Hanuabada]] after police reservists fired on a crowd.<ref>{{cite web | last=Blades | first=Johnny | title=Betel nut ban lifted in PNG capital | website=[[RNZ]] | date=5 May 2017 | url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/330172/betel-nut-ban-lifted-in-png-capital | access-date=2 November 2023}}</ref> The governor of Port Moresby introduced another ban on the nut, restricted to an area in the business district of the city in July 2023. However many people make a living out of selling betel nut, so are resistant to bans in their areas.<ref>{{cite web | last=Evans | first=Kyle | title=Port Moresby Governor launches new attempt to ban betelnut| format= audio + text | website=ABC Pacific | date=5 July 2023 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/pacific/programs/pacificbeat/port-moresby-governor-launches-new-attempt-to-ban-betelnut/102568276 | access-date=2 November 2023}}</ref> On [[Manus Island]], young men are exposed to piracy when they use small boats to travel to the northern coast to purchase betel nuts to trade, and several have disappeared.<ref name=swanston2023/>

In Australia, the importation, use, and sale of areca nut is banned, but it has been sold illegally in several [[South Asian cuisine|South Asian]] supermarkets.<ref>{{cite web |title=Banned substance betel nut readily available for sale in Australia |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/yourlanguage/punjabi/en/article/2016/10/26/banned-substance-betel-nut-readily-available-sale-australia |website=SBS.com.au |access-date=2 July 2018}}</ref>

===East Asia===
In Taiwan, bags of 20 to 40 areca nuts are purchased fresh daily by a large number of consumers. To meet the steady year-round demand, two kinds of betel-nut shops sell betel and nuts, as well as cigarettes and drinks, including beer: Small [[mom and pop shop]]s, often poorly maintained and with unassuming [[Facade|façades]], and shops which will often consist of nothing more than a single, free-standing room, or booth. The latter is usually elevated one meter above the street, and measures less than 3 by 2 m. Large picture windows comprise two or more of the walls, allowing those who pass by a complete view of the interior. The interior is often painted brightly. Within such a shop, a [[sexily]] dressed young woman, a "[[betel nut beauty]]", can be seen preparing betel and areca nuts. Shops are often identified by colorful (commonly green) LED lamps or [[neon light]]s that frame the windows or that are arranged radially above a store. Customers stop on the side of the road and wait for the girls to bring their betel and areca nut to their vehicles. The habit of chewing betel nut is often associated with blue-collar labor industries such as long-haul transportation, construction, or fishing. Workers in these labor-intensive industries use betel nut for its stimulating effect, but it also becomes a tool for socializing with coworkers. For example, studies have shown chewing betel nut is prevalent among taxi, bus and truck drivers, who rely on the stimulating effect of betel nut to cope with long work hours.<ref>Chuang CY, Chang CH, Chang CC. The workplace relevant factors of betel quid chewing among transportation workers in Central Taiwan (in Chinese). Taiwan Journal of Public Health 2007; 26: 433–42.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Health Survey for the Long-distance Bus Drivers |language=zh |location=Taipei |publisher=Republic of China (Taiwan), Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Council of Labor Affairs, The Executive Yuan |date=2003 |url=http://www.iosh.gov.tw/book/Report_Publish.aspx?PID=826&UID=F1165 |access-date=2011-08-18 |format=.zip |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330223118/http://www.iosh.gov.tw/book/Report_Publish.aspx?PID=826&UID=F1165 |archive-date=2012-03-30}}</ref><ref>Kuo SC, Lew-Ting CY. The health lifestyles of areca quid-chewing taxi drivers – an exploratory study from the viewpoint of social context (in Chinese). Taiwan Journal of Oral Medical Science 2008; 27: 67–80.</ref> For these reasons, oral cancer has been identified as a leading cause of death in professions with high betel nut-chewing rates.<ref>Republic of China (Taiwan), Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Council of Labor Affairs, The Executive Yuan. Analysis of the major causes of death of laborers in Taiwan (in Chinese). Taipei: Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Council of Labor Affairs, The Executive Yuan, 2010. {{cite web |url=http://www.iosh.gov.tw/Print.aspx?cnid=16&p=1773 |script-title=zh:勞工安全衛生研究所友善列印新聞稿-我國勞工的主要死亡原因分析-惡性腫瘤(癌症)、事故傷害、心臟疾病是勞工朋友三大健康殺手 |website=Institute of Occupational Safety & Health |access-date=2011-08-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330223221/http://www.iosh.gov.tw/Print.aspx?cnid=16&p=1773 |archive-date=2012-03-30}}</ref>

In [[Hainan]] and [[Hunan Province]], China, where [[Xiangtan]] is a center of use and processing,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/world/asia/20hunan.html |title=Despite Risks, an Addictive Treat Fuels a Chinese City |author=Dan Levin |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 19, 2010 |access-date=August 20, 2010}}</ref> a wide range of old and young people consume areca nut daily. Most, though, consume the dried variety of the nut by itself, without the betel leaves. Some people also consume the areca nut in its raw, fresh form with or without the betel leaves. Betel nuts are sold mostly by old women merchants, but the dried version can be found in shops that sell tea, alcohol, and cigarettes.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

===Other countries===
In the United States, areca nut is not a controlled or specially taxed substance and may be found in some Asian grocery stores. 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.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.publichealthlawcenter.org/sites/default/files/resources/Areca-Nut-Tobacco.pdf |title=Regulating Areca Nut, Betal Quite & Tobacco - Options and Opportunities |language=en-GB |website=www.publichealthlawcenter.org |access-date=2024-10-18}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom the betel nut is legal.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.drugwise.org.uk/betelnut/#:~:text=Unfortunately%2C%20chewing%20the%20nut%20can,the%20mouth%2C%20stomach%20and%20oesophagus.&text=Betel%20is%20legal%20in%20the%20UK.|title=Betel Nut - Drugwise |language=en-GB |website=www.drugwise.org.uk |access-date=2024-10-18}}</ref>

Possession of areca nut or betel leaf is banned in the [[United Arab Emirates|UAE]] and is a punishable offence.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dubai.ae/en/Lists/HowToGuide/DispForm.aspx?ID=6 |title=Avoid bringing banned items into the UAE |language=en-GB |website=www.dubai.ae |access-date=2017-10-13}}</ref>