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Betel nut chewing is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality in Taiwanese men ^1,2

¹ From the Department of Family Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan (W-YL and C-CL); the Department of Family Medicine and the Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Science (W-YL and C-CL) and the Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Science (C-YH), College of Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; the Department of Family Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan (W-YL, T-YC, L-TL, and K-CH); and the Institute of Health Care Administration, College of Health Science, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan (C-CL)

Background: Betel nut chewing is related to several kinds of cancer, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes. Whether it is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and all-cause mortality, however, remains unclear.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the association between betel nut chewing and CVD and all-cause mortality.

Design: A baseline cohort of 56 116 male participants 20 y old were recruited from 4 nationwide health screening centers in Taiwan in 1998 and 1999. Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were used to estimate the relative risks (RRs) of CVD and all-cause mortality for betel nut chewers during an 8-y follow-up period.

Results: There were 1549 deaths during the follow-up period, 309 of which were due to CVD. After adjustment for age, body mass index, diabetes, hypertension, lipids, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, income, and education level, the RRs (95% CI) of CVD and all-cause mortality among the former betel nut chewers were 1.56 (1.02, 2.38) and 1.40 (1.17, 1.68), respectively, and those among current chewers were 2.02 (1.31, 3.13) and 1.40 (1.16, 1.70), respectively, compared with persons who had never chewed betel quid. Current and former betel nut chewers had a higher risk of CVD mortality (RR: 2.10; P < 0.05) than did current and former smokers. Greater frequency of betel nut chewing was associated with greater CVD and all-cause mortality.

Conclusions: Betel nut chewing was independently associated with a greater risk of CVD and all-cause mortality in Taiwanese men. Regular screening for betel nut chewing history may help prevent excess deaths in the future. An anti-betel nut chewing program is urgently warranted for current chewers.