Ethnobotanicals Areca nut / Betel nut

[Gaz_hmmmm]

My Tamil friend has betel nut but it is called paaan. I did not chew it because it stains your teeth and it can apparently cause mouth cancer? They keep it in the refrigerator. I saw people chewing it at my friend's wedding after dinner but I thought it was a banana leaf filled with candy fennel seeds and I did not want to chew on it.

Paan is the name given to Areca nut (Called Berel nut but not from the betel tree.) wrapped in a betel leaf and chewed.
The little packs I’m getting don’t contain the betel leaf, just diced and flavoured betel nut without lime.
I think it’s the lime that really makes it stain your teeth but the Areca/betel nut are hard as hell and can damage your teeth from chewing them.