Some residents interviewed by this reporter said their New Year’s resolution includes “trying to stop chewing betelnut.”
Thomas Taitano, 39, of Garapan said he has been chewing betelnut since he was 16.
Asked what he gains from chewing, he said, “It eases boredom and [acts] as a stress reliever.”
Taitano said he wants to stop smoking and chewing betelnut but does not know how.
Herbert Cruz, for his part, vows to “minimize playing poker.”
He made the same New Year’s resolution last year but was not able to fulfill it because of “peer pressure.”
Another resident, who declined to be identified, said he also wants to stop chewing betelnut as his doctor advised him to do so.
He said he will chew his “last” 40 pieces of betelnut this week and will abstain from them beginning Jan. 1.
But his wife said she does not believe her husband will be able to stop chewing betelnut.
“Everybody around him is chewing betelnut including me and I do not think he can do it,” she said.
Asked what her New Year’s resolution is, she said, “I will never put tobacco on my betelnut anymore.”
According to Public Health, long-term chewing of betel nut has been associated with oral submucous fibrosis; pre-cancerous oral lesions, or mouth wounds; and squamous cell carcinoma, or mouth cancer.
Acute effects of betel chewing include worsening of asthma, low blood pressure, and rapid heart beat.
