Is Any Chewing Gum Really Healthy?

Everyone is told of the really bad effects of chewing gum, but gum chewing has been around since the Ancient days of Greece. They would pull the bark from specific trees and chew it to sweeten their breath. Many of the gum manufacturers have made all kinds of claims as to the ‘health benefits’ of chewing gum, including cleaning your teeth, but are there any types of gum that could be healthy for you?

The first thing that you need to know is that when you begin chewing gum it is actually tricking your brain (and your stomach) into thinking it is going to get food. There are immediate reactions, like the production of more stomach acid and saliva, to prepare for food. This can cause problems for those that suffer from certain types of tummy troubles.

The second thing is what the gum is made of. There is gum with sugar and some that have a sugar substitute. All of these are harmful for your teeth and can lead to more cavities. Most of the flavorings are man-made or chemical based and that can cause even more problems for your teeth.

There are some that say chewing gum helps them to keep their weight down because they don’t crave as much food. There isn’t any evidence for this because, as stated previously, gum is a fake-out for the body expecting food and once it expects food it goes to a lot of extremes to get it. This can include making you feel hungrier.

Gum chewing makes use of the entire mouth, including the jaws and many people that chew gum for a long period of time may end up with sore jaws. There is a particular disorder, called TMJ, that involves a weakness of the jaws from clenching and grinding and chewing gum can actually make that situation worse.

The last claim that is the most popular with gum makers is that it helps to clean your teeth. The Manufacturers have been making this claim for years and people have been buying gum because of it. The amount of flavors, textures, and types have been expanded so that there is a gum for everyone’s preference. While there is no evidence that supports the claim that gum helps to keep teeth clean, many people believe it.

What do you think? Would you be willing to do an experiment to see if gum really does help to keep teeth clean? Can you think of any other ways that gum could be used to show that it has any health value?