Salivary Flow Rates in Paan “ Tobacco - Betel - Lime Quid ” Chewers

Objectives: To study whether ingredients of Paan especially tobacco has got any untoward effects on secretion of saliva or otherwise. Material and Methods: Subjects of the study were divided into paan-chewers and non-chewers as controls. Each group contained 20 healthy male adults. The saliva of each subject was collected under resting condition and following stimulation by crude nicotine and citric acid solutions applied to the tip of the tongue. Results: After stimulation with nicotine and citric acid, all subjects of both groups showed a high increase in their salivary flow rates. The pattern of salivary flow rates of Paan-chewers was not much different from that of non-chewers except that the salivatory response in Paan-chewers was more exaggerated than in non-chewers. Conclusion: Paan (“tobacco-betel-lime quid”) chewing induces more salivary secretion in its users.