Is chewing gum bad for your stomach?

Whether you chew gum or not, you see it every day. Just look around.

There are probably traces of it in stores, on advertisements, on the sidewalk, and on the underside of bus seats, too.

Chewing gum

With around 347 trillion pieces and tablets of chewing gum produced each year, it's safe to say that chewing gum is quickly taking over our planet. Literally, because up to 100,000 tons of it are consumed worldwide each year.

Given these figures, it's surprising that we don't hear more about the impact the rubber base it's made of has on the environment and our health.

Folk tales

After chewing gum, it is quickly discarded and forgotten, with little concern for its disposal. Often, it ends up carelessly stuck somewhere on a public chair.

But what if we swallow gum? It has happened to many of us, intentionally or accidentally. According to folk tales, the gum we swallow will live in our stomach for seven years.

Myth

However, this is not entirely true. Although some types are resistant to digestion, it is unlikely that swallowed chewing gum will remain in the stomach for almost a decade.

Swallowing chewing gum is certainly not recommended, as it is not the best substance for digestion. The synthetic or rubber base can be problematic, and the body will not be able to properly digest and utilize it. But it certainly won't stay in the stomach for seven years.

Synthetic rubbers contain butyl rubber, a material that can also be found in car tires or basketballs. It's hard to imagine that our bodies would find a piece of tire particularly easy to digest.

But butyl rubber is just the rubber base, which even stomach acid may not completely break down. Everything else, such as the alcohols, carbohydrates, dyes, and oils found in gum, is digested. Eventually, even the indestructible base will be eliminated from the stomach, although this may take days (rather than weeks or years).

So, the next time you or your child swallows a piece of gum, there's no need to worry. It won't be sitting in your stomach for the next seven years.

We previously reported on why you should yawn and not hold back .