Benefits Of Mint Chewing Gum

Chewing gum is made by mixing artificial or natural rubber gum bases with sugar and flavoring. One popular flavor is plain mint gum. Not only is mint gum enjoyable to chew, it may also have several benefits.

Breath

One potential benefit of mint gum is its affect on your breath. The mint in the gum has a strong enough odor to mute the smells of common causes of bad breath, such as rotting food particles and bacteria in the mouth. Unfortunately, mint gum is only a temporary solution to bad breath.

Smoking

Mint gum can also be used to help you stop smoking. Chewing gum acts as an addiction displacement activity, helping to take your mind off of smoking by keeping your mouth busy. Some mint gums take this a step further by including nicotine in the gum. This inclusion allows nicotine to slowly be released from the gum where it can then be absorbed into the bloodstream by the tissues of the mouth. Once in the bloodstream, the nicotine from the mint gum helps reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms for a cigarette.

Weight Loss

Chewing mint gum may also help you in your weight loss efforts. Chewing gum can keep your mouth distracted, helping prevent cravings for food according to the National Institute of Health. Sugar free chewing gum typically contains less than 10 calories, making it a popular option on diet plans such as Weight Watchers and the American Dietetic Association Diabetic Exchange Lists. Even the act of chewing mint gum contributes to weight loss by burning calories at an average of 11 calories per hour.

Oral Health

Sugarless mint gum can have positive benefits for your oral health, according to the American Dental Association (ADA). Chewing gum activates the production of saliva in your mouth. The additional saliva helps wash away acids in the mouth that can contribute to the development of plaque on the teeth. The ADA recommends chewing sugar free gum for 20 minutes after a meal to experience optimum benefits from the gum.

Concentration

Chewing mint gum may also help increase concentration, which may increase your ability to learn and retain information. Studies performed by Baylor College of Medicine have shown that chewing gum may increase standardized testing scores, and may also help with alertness, as well as stress and anxiety relief.