The khat controversy: stimulating the debate on drugs

"Khat has been cultivated and consumed for millennia in the countries of the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea, where it is prized for its euphoric qualities. The Khat Controversy presents the first broad, international study of khat - from its value as a crop to local farmers and national economies, to its pharmacology and effects, to its use in a wide range of social rituals - and outlines how an international policy on khat might best be constructed."--Jacket

Khat. A harmless natural stimulant or a lethal epidemic sweeping through the international drugs trade? The authors go behind the veil of the drug, questioning its availability and its effect on its Red Sea producers. With case studies from Djibouti to Rome, it explores contemporary issues relating to globalization, ethnicity and culture