Researchers have uncovered the earliest known evidence of habitual drug use dating back 25,000 years on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. Scientists identified the practice by examining distinctive grooves found in the teeth of two prehistoric hunter-gatherers, which were caused by repeatedly sucking on betel nuts. These palm seeds contain arecoline, a neuroactive compound that would have produced a numbing sensation in the mouth, likely providing temporary relief from dental pain.
The two individuals studied lived thousands of years apart. One man lived between 25,000 and 16,000 years ago during the Last Glacial Maximum, while the second person inhabited the island between 7,600 and 6,300 years ago. The extensive dental damage observed in both individuals suggests they engaged in this behavior almost continuously throughout their lives. Researchers confirmed betel nut consumption through chemical analysis of tooth samples and testing on genetically modified frog eggs containing human neuroreceptors.
Rather than alleviating their dental problems, the habit appears to have worsened them significantly. The progressive deepening of tooth grooves eventually exposed the inner pulp cavity in one individual, which would have been extraordinarily painful. This discovery predates other known drug use in prehistoric societies, including Neanderthal use of willow bark and later evidence of psychedelic cactus pollen in Peru and alcoholic beverages in Israel, establishing betel nut sucking as humanity’s oldest recorded addictive behavior.
Originally reported by Livescience →
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