Chewing Betel (Menginang, Menyirih)

When I was a child, I pretty often went to a traditional masseuse for a light massage. I used to really like massage, but now I couldn’t stand it. Hihi…

I forgot what the name of the masseuse was, but I usually called her ‘Mbok’. This Mbok is one of traditional Javanese women that in her daily life she still wore kebaya and kain, her hair was tied into bun, and her mouth was reddish and her teetch was blackish.

Old women chewing betel (source)

At that time when I still didn’t know why it was like that, I thought that Mbok – and also a lot more other Javanese traditional old lady just like this Mbok – didn’t know how to wear lipstock, so they stained their lips. Then the black teeth were because she was lazy to brush her teeth.

But I was wrong. All that was because of the leaves Mbok often chewed. It was actually a little disgusting seeing Mbok and the other people chewing betel. She would chew the herbal roots wrapped by betel leaves with her molar teeth (but not all of them was put inside her mouth) until it turned black. When she felt enough chewed them in one side, she would move it to other side of the mouth. Sometimes she would also rub it all over her teeth, then after that she would spat. Yucks…

People say once you try chewing the betel, you’ll be addicted to it, just like smoking. So in the past, most of the men would smoke and most of the women chewed the betel.

Even though it seemed a little disgusting because the lips of people who like to chew betel would become messily reddish and the teeth would turn black, but some said that those black teeth are actually stronger than usual people’s teeth. I forgot where I read this before, the article said that the people who chew betel usually still have full teeth and have no problem chewing the hard food even though they are already elderly. Whoah… (o.O)

Is there anyone want to try chew betel to proof it? ;)

(FK)