Khandelwal Ashok, Khandelwal Vishal, Saha Mainak K, Khandelwal Sushma, Prasad Sai, Saha Suparana G
Department of Orthodontics, College of Dental Sciences, Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India.
Contemp Clin Dent. 2012 Apr;3(2):155-7. doi: 10.4103/0976-237X.96817.
To assess areca nut chewing habit among middle school-aged children in Indore, India. Areca nut is chewed by itself, and in various scented preparations. It is associated with carcinogenesis, foreign body aspiration in children, and oral submucous fibrosis and may aggravate asthma.
A retrospective collection of data to evaluate the prevalence of areca nut chewing among 3896 children was done. A simple random sampling was done. Children of both sexes were included in this study.
27.06% of the school-going children (1054/3896) had areca nut chewing habit. More boys chewed areca nut than girls (2:1). 45.42% of school going children of rural area pander to areca nut chewing habit, whereas in urban area 20.09% children are indulged. Government school children are more involved in areca nut chewing habit. 81.02% of the children used sweetened and flavoured form of areca nut. The majority of the users were not aware of harmful effects that the use of areca nut might be harmful for health
To diminish the use of areca nut, the Indian Government should consider limiting trade, advertising, and actively communicating its health risks to the public and should deem heavy taxes on it.
评估印度印多尔市学龄儿童嚼槟榔的习惯。槟榔可单独咀嚼，也可制成各种香味制剂。它与致癌、儿童误吸、口腔黏膜下纤维化有关，还可能加重哮喘。
回顾性收集数据，以评估3896名儿童中嚼槟榔的患病率。采用简单随机抽样。本研究纳入了男女儿童。
27.06%的学龄儿童（1054/3896）有嚼槟榔的习惯。嚼槟榔的男孩比女孩多（2:1）。45.42%的农村学龄儿童有嚼槟榔的习惯，而城市地区这一比例为20.09%。政府学校的儿童更常嚼槟榔。81.02%的儿童使用加糖和调味的槟榔。大多数使用者并未意识到使用槟榔可能对健康有害。
为减少槟榔的使用，印度政府应考虑限制贸易、广告宣传，并积极向公众宣传其健康风险，还应对其征收重税。
