Overview
- A study published in Science Advances reports two rare partial skeletons from Sulawesi with deep, rounded tooth grooves that the authors link to lifelong sucking of whole betel nuts.
- Chemical analysis detected arecoline, the betel-nut alkaloid, preserved in the dental tissues of the fossils, providing direct biochemical evidence of ingestion.
- Experimental work soaked betel nuts in artificial saliva and applied the extracts to cells engineered with human brain receptors, showing the nuts release neuroactive compounds even without modern processing.
- Researchers propose the habit began as a crude pain treatment that numbed toothache but wore down teeth and created a cycle of damage and continued use; later Neolithic innovations such as slaked lime increased the drug’s potency and health risks.
- The project, led by Griffith University in collaboration with Indonesian institutions, reframes the deep history of psychoactive-plant use and highlights the value of dental traces and chemical residues for finding ancient drug practices in tropical sites.