{"id":6108,"date":"2014-04-11T08:05:16","date_gmt":"2014-04-11T12:05:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/?p=6108"},"modified":"2014-04-11T16:39:38","modified_gmt":"2014-04-11T20:39:38","slug":"chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html","title":{"rendered":"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"gum<\/a>When that new flavor of gum hits the grocery store, its tempting. Watermelon sour, triple berry fruit…sounds like dessert in a stick, but what is the skinny on gum chewing?<\/p>\n

As a mom, I didn’t let my kids chew gum, probably because I am not a gum chewer, so we never had gum in the house. But I know a lot of people who smack away. So I wondered,\u00a0does chewing gum have benefits or does it do some harm?<\/p>\n

Don’t panic! Gum chewers don’t end up in the ER! But those of you who are a little orally fixated, might want to know your gum facts! And who knows, this could be a Jeopardy category one day!<\/p>\n

Dr. Bell, a GI in Virginia Beach, VA. weighs in on the pros and cons of gum chewing in a recent article in the Wall Street Journal. According to him, we need to get our gum facts right!<\/p>\n

Some people think gum chewing causes an upset stomach. Dr. Bell explains that when you first put that gum in your mouth, you signal the brain to begin the digestive process. Saliva is released thinking food is coming. Since no food shows up, you might think, uh oh, the stomach is tricked and acid is released. I feel boated or gassy. That feeling \u00a0comes from the air intake that comes with chewing, not the acid. So gum is not upsetting the stomach. I guess that gives credence to the old saying, chew with your mouth closed!<\/p>\n

Gum doesn’t act like a weight loss agent either. Remember it kick starts the digestion system which might make you feel even more hungry. So despite the claims, chew because you like it, not to lose weight! And if you want to freshen your breath, gum is true to that promise!<\/p>\n

If you listen to your dentist and chew sugar free gum, you aren’t completely in the clear. The main ingredient in sugar free gum, Sorbitol, taken in large amounts, can give you GI problems. Some people can get excessive gas from that ingredient taken in high doses, so moderate or stop if you are sensitive to Sorbitol.<\/p>\n

Dr. Bell also notes that there are studies linking adolescent gum chewing to migraine headaches and that people with mild jaw problems could irritate those problems even more.<\/p>\n

So is there any good news here? Yes, other studies say chewing gum during a task can help you think better. Maybe that is why so many teens smack away during their exams!<\/p>\n

I probably just took the fun out of gum, but hey, if you need to chew, it’s way better than tobacco!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When that new flavor of gum hits the grocery store, its tempting. Watermelon sour, triple berry fruit…sounds like dessert in a stick, but what is the skinny on gum chewing? As a mom, I didn’t let my kids chew gum, probably because I am not a gum chewer, so we never had gum in the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":419,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[918],"tags":[2843,2841,2844,2840,2842],"class_list":["post-6108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-relationship-to-food","tag-chew-gum","tag-gi-problems","tag-gum","tag-gum-chewing","tag-sorbitol"],"yoast_head":"\nChew on This If You Chew on Gum<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When that new flavor of gum hits the grocery store, its tempting. Watermelon sour, triple berry fruit…sounds like dessert in a stick, but what is the skinny on gum chewing? As a mom, I didn’t let my kids chew gum, probably because I am not a gum chewer, so we never had gum in the…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Doing Life Together\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/drlindamintle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-04-11T12:05:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-04-11T20:39:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2014\/04\/gum-2-198x300.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Linda Mintle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@drlindamintle\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum","og_description":"When that new flavor of gum hits the grocery store, its tempting. Watermelon sour, triple berry fruit…sounds like dessert in a stick, but what is the skinny on gum chewing? As a mom, I didn’t let my kids chew gum, probably because I am not a gum chewer, so we never had gum in the…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html","og_site_name":"Doing Life Together","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/drlindamintle\/","article_published_time":"2014-04-11T12:05:16+00:00","article_modified_time":"2014-04-11T20:39:38+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2014\/04\/gum-2-198x300.jpg"}],"author":"Linda Mintle","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@drlindamintle","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html","name":"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2014\/04\/gum-2-198x300.jpg","datePublished":"2014-04-11T12:05:16+00:00","dateModified":"2014-04-11T20:39:38+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/#\/schema\/person\/1e16a9c7332cfcc5b5d89e4ba3a36142"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2014\/04\/gum-2-198x300.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2014\/04\/gum-2-198x300.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2014\/04\/chew-on-this-if-you-chew-on-gum.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Chew on This If You Chew on Gum"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/","name":"Doing Life Together","description":"Relationship Doctor, Mental Health, Emotional Wellness, Relationship Advice & Entertainment","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/#\/schema\/person\/1e16a9c7332cfcc5b5d89e4ba3a36142","name":"Linda Mintle","description":"It is rare that a trained academic who speaks passionately to the heart of people providing real answers to real life problems is so relatable. Dr. Linda\u2019s fun personality and expertise comes through whether she\u2019s helping her audience stress less or make peace with their thighs! Dr. Linda has her Ph.D. in Urban Health and Clinical Psychology and is a national expert on mental health. She has specialized in the treatment of eating disorders, anxiety, depression and pain management. With 30 years of clinical experience working with couples, families and individuals, she brings her common-sense approach to people who want to live in positive mental health. Dr. Linda is also a bestselling author with 21 book titles to her credit, a radio host of the Dr. Linda Mintle show, professor, national speaker, winner of the Mom\u2019s Choice Award, a national news consultant, featured writer for Beliefnet and hosts her own website. Her academic appointments keep her abreast of current research in her areas of expertise. Her media experience includes seven years as the resident expert for ABC Family\u2019s Living the Life television show and regular appearances on network television and radio. It is often said that being with Dr. Linda is like having coffee with a friend. She makes the complicated issues of relationships and mental health easy to understand and applicable to everyday living. The ease she has with people, coupled with her clinical training and experience makes her a sought-after speaker on college campuses, conferences and special events. Whether she is doing a TV skit with Tim Conway or discussing teen violence with Queen Latifa, Dr. Linda will entertain, educate and integrate faith and mental health in everyday living. Check out her latest book Hope and Healing for Anxiety, a whole-person approach to eliminate anxiety. .","sameAs":["https:\/\/drlindamintle.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/drlindamintle\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/drlindamintle\/","https:\/\/x.com\/drlindamintle"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/author\/lmintle"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6108","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/419"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6108"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6108\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6122,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6108\/revisions\/6122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6108"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6108"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}