Archaeologists from Griffith University have found evidence suggesting that humans were using mind-altering substances much earlier in time than scientists once thought.
The research was led by Professor Adam Brumm of Griffith's Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE), together with ARCHE colleagues Associate Professors Carney Matheson and Michelle Langley. By combining archaeological evidence with biochemical testing, the team traced the deep history of "betel nut," one of the world's most widely used addictive stimulants and a long-established psychoactive substance across much of the Asia Pacific region.
Working with Indonesian archaeologists from Makassar's University of Hasanuddin and the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), the researchers found evidence that some communities in Indonesia were using betel nut as a drug as far back as 25,000 years ago. That pushes the practice far beyond earlier estimates that placed its beginnings in the Neolithic or Bronze Age (~3500 years ago).
Rethinking the Origins of Psychoactive Drug Use
One common theory holds that widespread traditions of psychoactive drug use emerged only after humans began farming during the Neolithic period. Among the earliest known examples are fermented alcoholic drinks (barley beer) produced about 13,000 years ago in Israel.
