| A study of 342 oral keratotic white lesions induced by qat chewing among 2500 Yemeni. |
| They sit together and chew qat leaves and smoke the narghile, or water-pipe. |
| But the qat tree is the mainstay of the country's economy and the downfall of anyone foolish enough to question its pre-eminence. |
| Others drink it as a tea made from dehydrated qat, packaged in powder form like instant coffee or locally popular milk tea. |
| Those not invited to a mafraj a sunlit living-room at the top of Yemeni homes chew qat in the street or at work. It was not always like this. |
| But qat is alien, both in the West and in China, and that makes it an easy target. |
