Were Humans in Thailand Getting High Off Betel Nuts 4,000 Years Ago?

Press/Media: Expert comment

Description

In order to test whether the remains showed evidence of betel nut consumption, researchers analyzed 36 samples of dental calculus from six individuals at the Nong Ratchawat burial site in Thailand. Picture the calcified plaque that’s scraped from your teeth when you get a deep cleaning at the dentist. Roger Forshaw, a biological anthropologist at the University of Manchester in England who was not involved in the study, says that dental calculus is like an archaeological time capsule, because it doesn’t deteriorate and can preserve microscopic evidence from a person’s life such as the diet they may have consumed.

Period1 Aug 2025

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Media contributions

  • TitleWere Humans in Thailand Getting High Off Betel Nuts 4,000 Years Ago?
    Media name/outletSmithsonian Magazine
    Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
    Date1/08/25
    DescriptionIn order to test whether the remains showed evidence of betel nut consumption, researchers analyzed 36 samples of dental calculus from six individuals at the Nong Ratchawat burial site in Thailand. Picture the calcified plaque that’s scraped from your teeth when you get a deep cleaning at the dentist. Roger Forshaw, a biological anthropologist at the University of Manchester in England who was not involved in the study, says that dental calculus is like an archaeological time capsule, because it doesn’t deteriorate and can preserve microscopic evidence from a person’s life such as the diet they may have consumed.
    Producer/AuthorAmber Chen
    URLfile:///C:/Users/44786/Desktop/Were%20Humans%20in%20Thailand%20Getting%20High%20Off%20Betel%20Nuts%204,000%20Years%20Ago_.html
    PersonsRoger Forshaw