Mombasa County Assembly Committee on Health want the use of Miraa banned across the County.
The committee Deputy chairperson Fatma Kushe, said the stimulant popularly known as 'muguka' had widely affected the lives of the youth in Mombasa and should be banned.
"The stimulant is being sold to children as young as 12-year-old in this county. Addicts later engage in petty crimes to raise money to buy the drug. It must be banned,” said Kushe over the weekend.
She added that the County Health Department engaged in various meetings with Miraa stakeholders with the committee warning the stakeholders to get ready for the ban.
"We have warned them to be prepared for the ban."
Miraa is widely sold in Kongowea and Tononoka grounds, with more than four pick-ups ferrying the product to Kongowea market on a daily basis.
Members of County Assembly in Mombasa have seconded the ban saying it s threatening marriages.
Women in the neighbouring Kilifi and Kwale counties have also protested over the stimulant, saying their men have been affected by Miraa and should be banned.
High consumption of khat affects men's sexual performance and could lead to heart attacks, a study revealed in 2015.
The study by scientists from Moi University, Eldoret, also found out that the drug increases blood pressure.
"The consumption of the drug also results in a rise in blood pressure but does not cause cancer as has been reported in some quarters," said lead scientist Ochiba Lukanda.
Lukanda said a similar study in the Middle East showed men who stopped taking miraa performed better sexually.
The report was one of two on miraa and cancer cases in Marsabit, released at the Great Rift Valley Lodge in Naivasha, at a forum by Consortium for National Health Research.
Doctor Lukoye Atwoli said the ingredients in the plant affect the quality of sperm after long use, adding consumption also results in mental disorders, mood swings and depression.
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