Chewing Gum Can Be Beneficial !

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The chewing gum is basically a type of gum made of ‘chicle’, a natural latex product, or it is made out of synthetic rubber by name polyisobutylene. Many parents incuding me, don’t like their children chewing gum. The reasons are not very clear. May be children they look odd all the while chewing the gum like a cow masticating its cud! Possibly the prancks played by the children with this gum can be another reason which makes the parents to think against this product. Many a times kids stuck this gum anywhere in the house only to find it out when it has created sufficient damage to the property! Though most of us have some apathy towards the chewing gum, today I would like to discuss about the positive side of this infamous gum through this write up of mine! Chewing gum is known to help to add freshness to our breath and this can aid in removing food particles and bacteria from our teeth that are associated with bad breath. Thus dentistss suggest t use Chewing gum to cure bad breath which is known as ‘Halitosis’. A sugar fee chewing gum does have a ‘caries preventive effect’ just because of the chewing process. The sugar-free Chewing gum sweetened with ‘xylitol’ has been shown to reduce cavities and plaques. The sweetener sorbitol also has the same benefit however Xylitol is specific in its inhibition of the bacteri Streptococcus mutans which is responsible for cause of tooth decay. It is interesting to know that several randomized controlled studies have been conducted and found that the chewing gum has a significant role in reducing the duration of post-operative ileus following abdominal and specifically gastrointestinal surgery. This indeed is a very important use of this product. Recently it was found that chewing gum is used in the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Chewing gum helps in stimulating the production of more bicarbonate-containing saliva in the oral cavity and increases the rate of swallowing. This bi carbonate containing saliva when swallowed, it helps in neutralizing acid in the esophageal track. Another important use of chewing gum is this can be effectively used in curing a conditon known as “xerostomia”, where there is no enough production of saliva in the mouth cavity. Since chewing gum naturally stimulates saliva production this is recommended by the experts as a cure to this condition. I am sure having gone through this column you will now change your attitude towards the chewing gum and start appreciating the advantages of this product like me! Thanks !