File photo of miraa user. [PHOTO/nation.co.ke]
A new study conducted in Nairobi has said miraa (khat) chewing leads to serious mental problems to those who use the drug.
This comes almost a year after the government's researchers and scientists gave miraa a clean bill of health over whether it was a drug or not.
The report findings published last week by the University of Konstanz in Germany and University of Nairobi (UoN) showed high rates of mental illnesses observed among heavy users of miraa in Nairobi.
According to the report, these users suffer from depression, post-traumatic disorder (PTSD) and psychosis that comes in form of hallucinations and delusions.
Last month, Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) scientists released findings of a two-year study that had investigated the effects of chewing miraa on usesrs in Embu and Meru counties.
The results, however, said that miraa did not have a negative impact on one's health.
“We subjected the data through finer levels of analysis which showed that miraa did not cause psychotic disorders,” said lead researcher Prof Charles Mbakaya.
But the UoN findings confirm those of Khat Research Programme (KRP) based at the University of Minnesota, US, which confirmed the detrimental mental effects of khat among users in Kenya, the Middle East and Europe.