One of the first "odd" things that I noticed when I arrived in our village of Non Nam Thaeng was a small number of elderly ladies (all in their eighties) with red-stained lips and blackened or missing teeth; not a very aesthetic sight at first glance.

Actually, chewing Areca catchu nut wrapped in a betel leaf is a wide-spread ancestral custom in South-East Asia. In fact, archaeological evidence from north-western Thailand shows the remains of Areca catchu dating from 10,000 BC.

THE QUID PREPARATION

On different occasions I quietly sat down by one of these elderly ladies and closely observed their ritual. At first, they reach for their personal "chewing kit" where all the necessary tools and ingredients are stored.

 

A betel quid is made with three essential ingredients:

1 -  The "nut" which is the seed of the Areca catchu, a tree of the palm family. A young nut will be succulent and sweet-tasting whereas a mature one will be bitter.

   


2 - The leaf, used to wrap the ingredients, comes from the vine of the Piper betel pepper plant. The leaf is broad with a prominent central vein.

  


3 - The lime-based white paste (calcium hydroxide) which is spread on the leaf.





Step 1 - The leaf of the Piper betel pepper plant is delicately and evenly daubed with the lime paste.


Step 2 - With a nut cutter the Areca catchu nut is cut in small pieces.


Step 3 - The small pieces of the Areca catchu nut are placed in a small wooden mortar, along with other flavoring ingredients such as cardamon, coriander, clove, nutmeg and tobacco, and then crushed all together into a coarse powder.


Step 4 - This coarse powder is then placed into the lime daubed leaf and wrapped tightly into a small mouth fitting bundle.


Finally, the ladies place their wad between their teeth and cheek to allow for chewing and sucking. They will keep it for hours occasionally spitting their red-colored saliva into a small spitting bucket. It might not be considered to be an elegant habit from a urban point of view, but nobody here pay any attention.


Chewing betel induces a mild euphoria and a feeling of well-being, a fact that all these practicing elderly ladies have personally confirmed to me. Betel chewing is not addictive but certainly is habit-forming. The main alkaloid in the Areca catchu nut, arecoline, activates secretion, increases smooth muscle activity, salivation and thirst, while reducing appetite. The alkaloids in the Areca catchu nut also contribute to neutralize stomach acids and act as an astringent. On the other hand, betel chewing causes gum disease due to the irritating effects of the lime. With time, it will greatly contribute to premature tooth lose.


Unfortunately, such an ancestral custom will only survive in our village as long as these few happy elderly ladies remain alive. This blog article is dedicated to them.


Bibliography: Betel Chewing in South-East Asia by Dawn F. Rooney

Written by: Chris Aupretre