Story perspectives

Indonesia finds 25,000-year-old betel nut users, challenges theory

By Drooid · Sep 11, 2026, 4:03 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Researchers in Indonesia uncovered two forager skeletons on Sulawesi.
One skeleton dates to 25,000–16,000 years ago and the other to 7,600–6,300 years ago.
Deep tooth grooves on the fossils indicate the individuals sucked betel nuts, likely causing severe gum disease.
The discovery challenges the claim that psychoactive drug use began only after farming started about 13,000 years ago.

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Story summary

Researchers in Indonesia uncovered two forager skeletons on Sulawesi.
One skeleton dates to 25,000–16,000 years ago and the other to 7,600–6,300 years ago.
Deep tooth grooves on the fossils indicate the individuals sucked betel nuts, likely causing severe gum disease.
The discovery challenges the claim that psychoactive drug use began only after farming started about 13,000 years ago.