What is betel nut?

There are many foods in our lives that are not common. When preparing and using some foods, they need to be done according to their own circumstances, so as not to harm our health. So what is betel nut? Many people don’t know much about this, but many people like to eat it. It has a unique taste and is rich in nutrients.

So what is betel nut? It is a food that can be seen abroad. There are many ways to eat this kind of food, but when eating it, you should also pay attention to choosing the best amount so that it will not cause harm to all aspects of your body.

What is betel nut?

The betel nut tree (Areca catechu) is cultivated in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines. The trunk is unbranched and is 12 to 15 meters high. Betel nut is the seed of the Areca catechu tree of the palm family. Betel leaf is the leaf of Piper betle of the Piperaceae family. The betel nut is slightly smaller than an egg, has a fibrous peel and contains a seed, the betel nut. Endosperm hard with gray-brown spots. The fruits are harvested before they are fully ripe from August to November, peeled, boiled, sliced ​​into thin slices and dried. They are dark brown or black when dried. Betel nut is the raw material of inferior catechu, whose main bioalkali is arecaline, which is used as an anthelmintic by veterinarians.

Betel nut (Bīng Láng) has an upright, tree-like stem that is more than 10 meters high and can reach up to 30 meters, with obvious ring-shaped leaf marks.

The leaves are clustered at the top of the stem, 1.3-2 meters long, with numerous pinnae, glabrous on both sides, narrowly lanceolate, 30-60 cm long, 2.5-4 cm wide, the upper pinnae fused, with irregular teeth at the top. Monoecious, with many-branched inflorescences, the inflorescence axis is thick and flattened, the branches are zigzag, 25-30 cm long, slender at the top, with 1 or 2 rows of male flowers, while the female flowers are solitary at the base of the branches; the male flowers are small, sessile, usually solitary, rarely in pairs, sepals are ovate, less than 1 mm long, petals are oblong, 4-6 mm long, 6 stamens, filaments are short and degenerate

There are 3 linear pistils; the female flowers are larger, with ovate sepals, nearly round petals, 1.2-1.5 cm long, 6 staminodes, fused; the ovary is oblong. The fruit is oblong or ovoid, 3-5 cm long, orange-yellow, with a thick, fibrous mesocarp. The seeds are ovate, truncated at the base, with a chewy endosperm and basal embryo. The flowering and fruiting period is March to April.

Through the above introduction, we have a good understanding of what betel nut is, so you can eat it with confidence. However, eating betel nut for a long time is not good for your teeth. When choosing this kind of food to eat, you should choose it in moderation, which will protect your body and teeth.