Betel nut has a bitter taste, but chewing it with fenugreek and shellac has a sweet flavor.

In 2003, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) put betel nut on its "blacklist", classified as a class 1 carcinogen, along with alcohol, tobacco and arsenic. There are two reasons for the carcinogenicity:

Firstly, the chemical substances in betel nut form nitroso compounds after chewing, which are carcinogenic.

Secondly, betel nut is hard, and it is easy to cause mechanical trauma to the oral mucosa when chewing.

The CCTV report mentioned that betel nut has a close relationship with the development of oral cancer, and Zhang Sheng, a physician at the Oral Healthcare Center of the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University in Hunan, explained, "About 60 percent of patients with oral cancer are related to betel nut eating."

Extended information

Chewing betel nut regularly, in addition to serious damage to the teeth, resulting in red and black teeth, or even early loss, there is also a high risk of cancer. As early as 2003, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a subsidiary of the World Health Organization, identified betel nut as a Class I carcinogen.

The medical profession believes that regular chewing of betel nut will cause oral ulcers, gum degeneration, submucosal fibrosis, which will lead to oral cancer, medical research has found that chewing betel nut increases the risk of oral cancer by 8.4-9.9 times, betel nut and betel nut alkali in betel nut fruit are potentially carcinogenic, and betel nut flowers and vines all contain carcinogenic substances.

People's Daily Online - The taste of Lijia in betel nut

People's Daily Online - 60% of oral cancer and eating betel nut is related to Beware of the hazards of betel nut can cause cancer

Baidu Encyclopedia - Betel nut

Baidu Encyclopedia - Betel nut is a carcinogen. -Betel nut