Chew it over and chew it well

If you believe the evidence of your eyes then chewing gum is a powerful tool. Teenagers can employ a good gum chew to heighten their swagger and sense of devil-may-care disregard for social norms. Sports people also seem to rely on it heavily to sharpen their reflexes and nothing soothes the frayed nerves of a cricketer who just been dismissed so much as belting a chewed wadge of gum into the eager hands of an excited crowd. Yes, the power of chewing gum is wide and deep and now it seems that the reach will go even further as gums that can deliver vitamins, minerals and herbs enter the market.

According to a recent chewing gum market report from Global Industry Analysts Inc. the global chewing gum market will reach an estimated worth of US$23 billion by 2017. As of 2010 the market for nutraceutical or functional gums was worth US$5.5 billion and its proportion of the overall market is projected to grow. These functional gums promise an array of health and dental benefits and the mainstream players are very interested.

Cadbury, owned by Kraft Foods, have put out chewing gum products under their brands that have added vitamin C, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, or ginseng. In Sweden a gum called “Vigo Beauty” contains a cocktail of vitamins which are claimed to strengthen your hair and nails and give you healthy, elastic skin. The question is though, how good are these “nutritive” gums in reality?

A plus for chewing gum is that it is convenient to carry and can be taken easily and directly without the prerequisite of water as is required for tablets. The theory is that the nutrients in the gum will be released after a short period of chewing and some absorption will happen directly through the lining of the mouth (the oral mucosa) depending on the ingredient in question. Due to the rich blood supply of the cheeks, measurable concentrations of active substances may be in the blood after only a few minutes of chewing and fast onset of action is theoretically obtained. This bypasses liver metabolism and any breakdown in the gastrointestinal tract. Of course this may a good or a bad thing depending on the ingredient in question and how well studied it is in terms of absorption and consequent dosage required.

The downside is that the release rate of an active substance is determined not only by the formulation of the chewing gum but also by the properties of the active substance and of the individual who is chewing the gum. Water soluble substances will be almost completely released within 10-15 minutes. Fat soluble substances, however, show a slow and incomplete release and demand extensive formulation work to make them viable. The release of the ingredients will also relate to the time the gum is being chewed and to the frequency and intensity with which the individual is chewing. It also depends on the amount and composition of the individual’s saliva. So there could be significant variability in absorption outcomes from person to person.

Chewing gum also has its own inherent problems. It can tire out jaw muscles and if a person has a pre-existing jaw condition (such as a temporomandibular joint condition, otherwise known as “TMJ”), chewing gum can aggravate the condition, as well as provide extra wear and tear on the cartilage surrounding the jaw joints.

The biggest problem though could be with the most common ingredient in standard chewing gums: sugar. Sugar is involved in a range of health problems from heart disease to diabetes and, of course, cavities. While there are gums that don’t use sugar, some artificial sweeteners can be just as detrimental to general health. Xylitol is sometimes touted as the best sweetening option for chewing gums. Xylitol is a “natural” sweetener that is extracted from berries, vegetables, corn cobs, birch, and mushrooms. It is a favoured sweetener in chewing gums because it does not encourage bacterial growth and may reduce the incidence of cavities. This does not mean that it is without problems. Up to 50 grams of xylitol per day is deemed safe but beyond that it is toxic. Even smaller doses can induce bloating and diarrhoea. A typical piece of gum using xylitol as a sweetener may contain 0.7-1g, but if you use xylitol sweeteners as a sugar substitute as well then your daily intake can mount quickly.

In the end, then, there is a lot to chew over before gum could be seen as a viable way to deliver vitamins, minerals, or herbs. It is an option that might need to be left for pondering on the bed-post overnight.