Chew On This

The country of Yemen has virtually no cocaine or heroin users. This is not because of strong policing. Rather, the Yemen people have another drug that has very similar effects as cocaine. This drug is called khat, and it is derived from the Catha edulis plant. It is also known as chat, qat, or The Flower of Paradise. Up to 40% of cultivated land in Yemen is devoted to growing the plant. Khat is ingested by wrapping up to a pound of Leaves and twigs in banana leaves to form a bundle called a ma duuf. The bundle is stored in the cheeks and chewed, which extracts the jucie. The juice is either swallowed or spit out. Khat chewing has spread around the world, but it is especially common in several regions of Somalia and Yemen. An economist in Yemen blames khat for the country’s poverty: approximately 80% of the population chew khat four hours a day and socialize instead of working.

Khat contains vitamins and minerals along with cathinone, cathine, and norephedrine, which are responsible for the stimulant effects of the plant. Khat acts like amphetamine but is reportedly more euphoric and short-acting. Like amphetamine, khat causes a release of the neurotransmitters dopamine and norephinephrine (noradrenaline). Like amphetamine users, khat users experience alertness, excitement, greater concentration and creativity and well-being. Sexual libido is said to increase in both sexes. But habitual use can result in constipation, insomnia, psychosis, and anorexia. In Yemen, the sexual dysfunction of male khat users is thought to underlie the failure of many marriages.

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