Khat Use in Persons with Mental Illness in Southwest Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Khat is a natural psychoactive substance, which has been chewed for many years in Ethiopia, East Africa, and the southern Arabian Peninsula [1-3]. With the recent globalization, khat chewing has spread with African and Arabian immigrants to various Asian [4] and European [5-9] countries, and to Australia [10-12], as well as to the United States [13]. The users of khat in these new countries are predominantly immigrants from the khat chewing countries [9]. Evidence shows that fresh khat leaves contain more than 40 chemicals [15]. However, most of the stimulant effect of khat is thought to come from the chemicals cathinone, cathine, and norephedrine [14,15]. Khat users report increased levels of energy, alertness, sensations of elation, self-esteem, enhanced imaginative ability, capacity to associate ideas when using and an increase in libido [16,17]. Khat use is also associated with increased blood pressure/hypertension, development of gastrointestinal tract problems, cytotoxic effects on liver and kidneys, and keratotic lesions at the site of using [18,19].