Khat
Khat is a flowering plant native to tropical East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It is also known as qat, qaat, quat, gat, jaad, chat, chad, chaad and miraa. The plant is grown commercially in Kenya, Ethiopia, Oman, and Yemen.
| Khat | |
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| Catha edulis | |
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| Species: | C. edulis
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| Catha edulis | |
Khat is a shrub. When grown commercially, the shrubs grow to a size of about 5m, in the wild they can reach about 20m.
Khat is used as a stimulant in Eritrea, Somalia, and Yemen the effects are comparable to those of drinking tea or coffee.
Problems
There are some problems with Khat. People can become psychologically addicted to the drug. Many anti-drug organisations, such as the Drug Enforcement Administration target this drug.[1] It is illegal to use in many countries, though not in Yemen.
Khat is very popular in Yemen. Much of the country's farming resources are used for it because farmers get more money than for other cash crops. It is estimated that 40% of the country's water supply goes towards irrigating it.[2] Its production is said to increase by about 10% to 15% every year.[2] It uses so much water that groundwater levels in the Sana'a basin are getting lower. For this reason, government officials have proposed to move large portions of the population of Sana'a to the coast of the Red Sea.[2]
Some studies done in 2001 estimated that the income from growing khat was about 2.5 million Yemeni rials per hectare, while it was only 0.57 million rials per hectare if fruits were grown. This is a strong reason farmers prefer to grow khat over coffee and fruits. It is estimated that between 1970 and 2000, the area on which khat was cultivated grew from 8,000 hectares to 103,000 hectares.[3]
Khat Media
Chewing chat
Qat tree in yemen
Khat cultivation in western Yemen near At Tawilah
Addiction experts in psychiatry, chemistry, pharmacology, forensic science, epidemiology, and the police and legal services engaged in delphic analysis regarding 20 popular recreational drugs. Khat was ranked 17th in dependence, 20th in physical harm, and 20th in social harm.
- SCathinone
The tropical evergreen plant called "chat" in Ethiopia (Catha edulis, aka qatt, jaad, or khat) has been widely used as a stimulant in east Africa and southern Arabia since antiquity.*Chat is legal in several countries, including Ethiopia and some of its neighbors. Chat is illegal in other countries, including the U.S.*Chat users prefer to chew the newest leaves from freshly-harvested stems.
Bundles of khat, seized by the DEA in July 2006
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References
- ↑ DEA. ""2006 in Pictures"". Archived from the original on 2009-12-01. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Yemen's khat habit soaks up water by Alex Kirby. Written 2007-4-7. Accessed 2007-4-8.
- ↑ Encyclopedia of Yemen (2nd ed), Alafif Cultural Foundation, pages 2309–2314, 2003.