Hypothesis: Chronic chewing of Khat sprayed with pesticides might be an important factor in the development of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus in chronic Khat chewers.Design: Prospective controlled study conducted between January 1998 and July 1999 and involved 240 subjects who were divided into two groups. The Khat chewer group (= 127 subjects) and the controls (= 113 subjects).Results: In the Khat chewing group; 41 subjects (32%) have non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus.
In the controls; 11 subjects (9%) have diabetes. P<0.05.Conclusions: The study showed an association between the habit of Khat chewing and the development of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus and suggests that this might be attributed to the adverse health effects of pesticides residues on the Khat chewers.