Hi viewers and welcome back to another Bestie video!
Did you know that people have been chewing gum in various forms for thousands of years?
Original gums were made from the sap of trees, such as spruce.
However, most modern chewing gums are made from synthetic rubbers.
But don’t let that scare you.
This is because all ingredients used in the processing of chewing gum have to be “food
grade” and classified as fit for human consumption.
Most of us enjoy chewing gums.
Just pop one while driving, walking, after a meal or simply to enjoy your oral fixation
with something sweet.
While you might already know that it is good for your teeth and keeps the mouth fresh,
it also has a number of other surprising health benefits.
And in today’s video, we will tell you what they are.
From improving digestion, preventing ear pain, increasing alertness, improving memory to
fighting nausea and more,watch till the end to learn about all of them.
Prevents Cavities and Improves Oral Health: This is probably the one fact about chewing
gum that most people know; it’s good for your teeth.
Sugar-free gum is known in particular to be effective in preventing tooth decay with its
effects being similar to mouthwash and toothpaste that contain fluoride.
Chewing on a sugarless gum for 20 minutes after a meal can keep tooth decay and gingivitis
at bay.
It works by increasing secretion of saliva in the mouth and removing food particles and
acids on the teeth.
These may otherwise lead to tooth decay.
Saliva further helps keep the enamel strong by supplying it with calcium and phosphate
to strengthen it.
This means the teeth have greater resistance to decay and cavities.
To give an extra boost to prevent teeth decay, choose gums with xylitol that come with extra
minerals to strengthen them.
What’s your favourite chewing gum flavour?
Let us know down below in the comments section!
Fights Nausea: People who are prone to morning or motion sickness can get great relief by
chewing on a piece of gum.
Especially the herbal types that have ginger in them to aid in salivary production and
digestion.
Surprisingly, a study even showed that chewing gum can be just as effective as prescription
drugs for nausea.
It’s also worthwhile to note that they are frequently prescribed after major bowel surgery
by surgeons to help stimulate the digestive system.
More studies back up this practice as an effective intervention thanks to its lack of side effects
and low cost.
Improves Breath: It's a no-brainer to pop in some gum when you want to fight bad breath,
but some are better than others.
In fact, researchers found that Wrigley's Big Red, a well-known cinnamon-flavored gum
with a plant essential oil for flavoring, reduced bacteria in the mouth that caused
bad breath.
It seems the key to picking the best breath-freshening gums is to find those with flavors, most of
which come from plant oils.
These fight bacteria and don't just mask odor.
Relieves Ear Pain: While flying can be exciting, fluctuating air pressures is definitely not
as enjoyable.
The intense earaches are quite the aerial nuisance, but luckily there is a way to combat
it.
And all it takes is a 99 cent pack of gum at the airport.
Don’t sit there repeatedly opening and closing your jaws and pinching your nose.
It’s not medically effective and you’ll probably end up looking rather ridiculous
to your seatmates.
On the other hand, the jaw movement and saliva production that’s yielded from gum chewing
efficiently assists in equalizing the pressure in your ears.
In other words, you can say goodbye to ear popping and get a refreshing burst of flavor
in the process.
Eases Acid Reflux: Acid reflux is a complicated problem where the stomach acids move up the
food pipe and cause chest congestion while damaging it simultaneously.
This gives rise to the familiar burning sensation in the throat or chest.
Surprisingly, chewing gum is a good way to ease acid reflux by clearing up the food pipe
and neutralising the acids to give some relief.
One study showed that chewing gum clears up the food pipe.
This reduces acid reflux to give you soothing relief while reducing inflammation.
Increases alertness: Getting eight hours of sleep is wonderful, but not always possible
on a daily basis.
If you find yourself nodding off at your desk, don’t resort to popping caffeine pills and
chugging coffee.
Studies have shown that chewing gum increases alertness due to the constant movement of
the jaw.
This repetitive activity is said to combat daytime drowsiness via heightened cerebral
activity.
Basically, chomping stimulates the nerves and areas of the brain linked with arousal
by increasing blood flow to that location.
In turn, people are left feeling awake for longer periods of time.
To be most effective, choose mint-flavored gum for that extra hit of freshness.
Improves Eating Habits: Chewing gum is a good way to keep your cravings at bay when you
are trying to lose weight.
Popping a sugar-free gum when you feel cravings for a sugary snack is a good way to immediately
reward yourself without all the additional calories and tricking your brain according
to studies.
This is also an excellent way for you to stop yourself from mindless nibbles of high-calorie
snacks while watching TV or relaxing.
So, if you’re looking to ward off your food cravings, grab a stick of gum instead of a
sugary treat to cut out all the unnecessary calories.
Relieves Dry Mouth: Yet another oral health benefit of chewing sugar-free gum includes
combating dry mouth.
It's been noted that chewing sugarless gum stimulates saliva up to 10 times the resting
rate.
This is a huge help in reversing oral dryness and the discomfort and problems associated
with dry mouth.
Improves memory: Chew this one over: If your memory is crashing on you lately, the solution
may lie in a simple stick.
According to a study, cognitive function and overall test performance were significantly
improved when subjects were chomping on gum.
Ultimately, it’s believed that this valuable mental boost comes from an increase of heart
rate and blood flow.
Medical results showed that the area of the brain responsible for concentration and reaction
times, was significantly sparked.
Delivery of oxygen to the brain also increased by as much as 25 to 40 percent.
Reduces stress and anxiety: Do you ever feel while biting your nails and shaking your legs
when you’re nervous?
Well the same concept applies here.
Nibbling on some gum serves as a fantastic substitute for instinctual nervous habits.
But don’t just take our word for it.
In a study, participants who chewed gum twice a day for 14 days rated their anxiety significantly
less than the non-chewers, reporting higher moods and lower fatigue levels.
Scientifically speaking, it was shown that gum chewing can significantly reduce the stress
hormone cortisol because the simple act of chewing is calming for most people.
Apart from chewing gum, there are other good ways to reduce stress and anxiety.
To know what they are, watch this video titled “5 Calming Herbs And 6 Spices That Fight
Off Stress And Anxiety”
No back to chewing gum health benefits.
Improves Digestion: While chewing gum has no direct influence on the digestive process,
doing so before a meal actually improves digestion.
This happens because the chewing action stimulates the mouth to produce saliva and the stomach
to produce digestive acids.
This effectively prepares the system for a meal.
So, not only will it ease in swallowing food but also improve digestion by getting the
stomach ready.
Chewing gum after a meal not only helps keep the mouth healthy but also helps in avoiding
indigestion by further stimulating the digestive process.
Helps Cigarette Smokers Quit: Even non smokers know that gum is no magic bullet to quitting
smoking.
But products, such as Nicorette gum, aim to help.
It delivers a controlled amount of nicotine to your system which attempts to reduce your
cravings.
In addition, chewing gum can help moderate the oral cravings of cigarettes, too.
Helps Treat Earworms: Earworms are incredibly common.
90% of us are victims of the earworm at least once a week.
It is a catchy piece of music that gets stuck in our heads and no matter what we do, we
can’t seem to dislodge it.
While they are not harmful, they can be really distracting and totally unpleasant sometimes.
Most of us are helpless against them, and just suffer through it.
But, you don’t have to anymore.
Researchers have identified chewing gum as the best way to treat earworms.
Now that is something to chew on.
Whitens Teeth: There are a variety of sugarless gums on the market that actually help to whiten
and brighten the surface of your teeth.
Try chewing Trident White which has patented whitening technology to help get your teeth
their whitest.
It’s also a great way to refresh your mouth and breath when you don’t have time to go
home and brush your teeth.
Helps you go….number 2: For those feeling a bit constipated lately, drop the laxatives
and try out the more natural and inexpensive remedy first.
Chewing gum has been proven to stimulate bowel movements by increasing the production of
gastric juices without having to digest any food.
According to a study, this can also help prevent the problems many people have when they start
eating or drinking too soon after surgery.
If you were amazed by how beneficial chewing gum can be for your health, there are other
lesser known foods that can be surprisingly good for your body.
Get to know more about them by:
Learning About The Health Benefits of Moringa Powder
Or
Understanding Why You Should Drink Raisin Water Daily On Empty Stomach
These 2 videos will definitely help you towards better health by using lesser known beneficial
products.
On what occasions do you like to chew gum?
Let us know in the comments section below!