India's landmark Howrah Bridge (file photo)

Indian people spit saliva after chewing Gutkha cigarettes caused serious corrosion of Howrah bridge pillars (file photo)

International online articles: According to the Christian Science Monitor on January 20, Indians love to chew a mixed tobacco product called Gutkha, which not only poses a serious threat to the health of the country's people, but also the saliva spit out after chewing Gutkha cigarettes because of its high concentration of acidic substances. It even threatens to corrode the country's landmark Howrahbridge.

Indian engineers say the Howrahbridge is in danger of collapsing because people appear to have "used" several of its pillars as convenient spittoons in recent years, while the pillars are being eaten away by spit from people chewing on Gutkha smoke.

After investigation, it was found that the metal skin outside several pillars of the Howrahbridge bridge has been corroded on average by half, and the culprit is the saliva of "high concentration of acidic substances" spit out by Indian people after chewing Gutkha smoke.

Gutkha is a stimulant packed in a plastic box, containing crushed betel nut, tobacco, paraffin and other secret ingredients, many of which contain carcinogenic and addictive properties. Activists in India reported a year ago that one in three men and one in five women in the country were addicted to chewing tobacco products, the most popular of which was Gutkha. Studies suggest that one million Indians die each year from tobacco use, and Gutkha alone causes 80,000 cases of oral cancer each year, the highest rate in the world.

So far, 17 of India's 28 states and three of its seven Union territories, including the capital New Delhi, have banned the production and sale of Gutkha cigarettes. (Su Zi Chu)

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