A Betel leaf (Piper betel) garden in a village of Meherpur, Bangladesh. June 28, 2007. Betel leaf or Pan is a tropical creeper belonging to the pepper family of plants named Piper betel. People chew it to sweeten the breath and color (crimson) the lip and tongue and also to have some narcotic pleasure. Normally pan is chewed with shell-lime paste (chun) and areca nut or Betel Nut (supari). Many eat pan mixing it with additional elements such as coriander-seed, cinnamon, cardamoms and manifold flavoured dusts.