Researchers analyzing two ancient skeletons from Indonesia found dramatic dental wear and traces of arecoline, suggesting people may have sucked psychoactive areca nuts as far back as 25,000 years ago. The finding could represent the earliest known evidence of psychoactive plant use, while also shedding light on a practice that remains widespread today despite serious health risks.

We already know that plants and fungi have accompanied humanity since the dawn of time. And yes, some of them have psychotropic properties. But now we have more evidence—in fact, the oldest known to date—that people have been seeking altered states of consciousness since basically forever.

Australian researchers discovered two skeletons on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia, whose teeth were not only deeply worn down but also contained traces of arecoline. This psychoactive substance is found in the areca nut, also known as betel nut.

According to the study, such extreme dental wear (so deep that it exposed the dental pulp) may have been caused by constantly sucking on the nuts, thereby releasing arecoline, their main neuroactive alkaloid. This would produce a mild high, along with a numbing effect.

At first, the deep grooves in the teeth puzzled the researchers who discovered the skeletons (one about 7,000 years old and the other between 16,000 and 25,000 years old). “What the hell were these people doing? It’s like someone had a drill head shaped like a gobstopper and wore away the inner part of the tooth,” Adam Brumm, the study’s lead researcher, commented, according to The Guardian.

“Imagine you kept a stone in your mouth and you moved it from one part of your mouth to another, and if you did that day after day, hour after hour. Eventually it would wear down your extremely hard dental tissue to form these grooves,” he explained. The team therefore proposed that these people may have been sucking on betel nuts before humans discovered that chewing them together with slaked lime enhances their effects.

So, the researchers conducted an experiment: soaking areca nuts in artificial saliva. Sure enough, this released small amounts of arecoline—enough to produce a psychoactive effect. Brumm even tried it himself: “It’s a really bitter, astringent taste. It makes your mouth go numb.”

He also suggested that this may have been precisely the desired effect, and that these pre-agricultural users may have found themselves trapped in a kind of vicious cycle: at first, sucking on betel nuts may have served as a remedy for dental pain, but daily use would damage their teeth, making the problem worse and leading them to use more to ease the pain.

Thus, the study argues, we may be looking at the earliest evidence of psychoactive substance use by humans, showing that people have been getting high since prehistoric times, if not earlier.

What Is Betel Nut, How Is It Used and Why You Shouldn’t Try It

According to the researchers, around 10% of the world’s population currently consumes this seed, particularly in South and Southeast Asia. Its use is deeply rooted in ancient traditions across several countries, specific social circles and informal markets.

To produce the desired effects, it is typically chewed after being wrapped in betel vine leaves (hence the name, even though the nut itself comes from a different plant) and mixed with slaked lime. This produces a stimulant high and increased concentration, comparable, according to some sources, to drinking several cups of coffee. In India, for instance, people from impoverished communities use betel nut to relieve hunger.

But although it may seem harmless, regular betel nut use carries serious health risks. The list is long: from cancer (especially oral and esophageal) and addiction to various disorders affecting the endocrine, cardiovascular, nervous, gastrointestinal, metabolic, respiratory and reproductive systems. It might be easier to make a list of the systems that aren’t affected by consuming this seed.

Today, some consider this a neglected global public health emergency, not only because of the extremely high rates of use and abuse and the devastating health effects associated with them, but because there is still no coordinated global policy in place to curb the problem. Still, some countries have taken independent action to restrict its use, such as Papua New Guinea and Australia, but the nut is so popular and ubiquitous that the results of these measures have been less than satisfactory.

Photo by Michael Jerrard on Unsplash

Source link

The number of people being arrested for drug offences in Jersey has reduced by 32% as residents can now be lawfully prescribed medical cannabis, a police report has said.

Drug arrests in Jersey dropped from 170 in 2022 to 115 in 2025, according to the States of Jersey Police’s first Crime and Policing Statistics report, which analysed data from January 2022 to June 2026.

The report identified a “key driver” of the reduction as “a reduction of an illicit cannabis market in Jersey” due to “an increased provision of medicinal cannabis” amongst the population.

However, senior police officers have said the legal status of medicinal cannabis is creating new challenges for frontline enforcement.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Hafey told the BBC it was difficult for officers to determine whether someone was using cannabis lawfully. “Occasionally we get reports from people saying there’s a strong smell of cannabis and we go and, actually, it’s someone who says that they’ve been prescribed that cannabis, and that can cause us a real challenge,” he said.

“Quite often someone will say that they have a prescription but they might not have it on them.”

Hafey said the force supported people using prescribed medicinal cannabis lawfully but added there would “always be people that want to abuse the system”.

He said police were now focusing on the diversion of prescribed cannabis into the illegal market and would need to work more closely with prescribers, regulators and government to ensure “checks and balances are in place to prevent those people from then abusing the system”.

Data from the Government of Jersey suggests there were around 4,000 active patients on the island during the most recent audit, conducted in 2024. Medical cannabis was legalised in Jersey on January 1, 2019, allowing authorised doctors to prescribe cannabis-based products through private clinics.

Deputy Tom Coles, who previously proposed to decriminalise cannabis in 2024, said the fall in cannabis-related offences was positive because fewer people were being criminalised, but called for stronger safeguards around prescribing.

“I think there is still work around making sure that people aren’t going from one clinic to another clinic to get a large supply, which then they sell,” he said.

Coles added that Jersey should rethink its wider approach to cannabis. “My real concern comes with that we’ve got people prescribing medicinal strength levels of cannabis using it recreationally and we don’t know what the long-term impact of that’s going to be,” he said.

Politicians from both Jersey and neighbouring island Guernsey have independently advanced proposals to reform cannabis laws in recent years. In January 2026, Deputy Leadbeater of Guernsey initiated an investigation into full legalisation through a new cross-committee working group. In February 2026, Deputy Tom Binet, Jersey’s health minister, submitted proposals that would treat cannabis use as a public health issue rather than a criminal matter. A vote on the proposal was delayed due to elections, but is expected to return to the States Assembly for consideration in due course.

Source link