New Chewing Gum Flavors

You can’t stop people from chewing. They’ve been doing it for centuries.

The ancient Greeks chewed mastiche, made from mastic tree resin ( and most likely the flavor to match). Ancient Mayans chewed the sap from the sapodilla tree while Indians in North America chewed the sap from spruce trees and gave the idea to the settlers. Early American settlers came up with a chewing gum from spruce sap and beeswax. You can still find this "flavor" in some gift stores.

Many years and steps later we have such a wide assortment of flavors you could choose a different one for each week of the year—at least.

Some newer arrivals include sugar-free Wrigley's Orbit Mist in Mango Surf, Watermelon Spring, and Peppermint Spray. The package says they hydrate and they do indeed and for a pretty long time. The gum doesn't "dry out" in your mouth like some do-- the micro bursts keep the flavor fresh.

The flavor is very intense at first—the Mango Surf and Watermelon Spring pack a knock- you- off- your- chair sweet-tart burst that becomes more subtle but stays with you. The Peppermint Spray is still intense with long-lasting flavor.

Highly recommended.

Chewing Gum For the Mind?

Chewing is also said to reduce stress, control weight and even sharpen your focus.

A study unwrapped at the 2008 10th International Congress of Behavioral Medicine found that chewing gum:
"Relieved Anxiety: When chewing gum, participants reported lower levels of anxiety. Gum chewers showed a reduction in anxiety as compared to non-gum chewers by nearly 17 percent during mild stress and nearly 10 percent in moderate stress.

Increased Alertness: Participants experienced greater levels of alertness when they chewed gum. Gum chewers showed improvement in alertness over non-gum chewers by nearly 19 percent during mild stress and 8 percent in moderate stress.

Reduced Stress: Stress levels were lower in participants who chewed gum. Levels of salivary cortisol (a physiological stress marker) in gum chewers were lower than those of non-gum chewers by 16 percent during mild stress and nearly 12 percent in moderate stress.
Improved Performance: Chewing gum resulted in a significant improvement in overall performance on multi-tasking activities. Both gum-chewers and non-chewers showed improvement from their baseline scores; however, chewing gum improved mean performance scores over non-gum chewers by 67 percent during moderate stress and 109 percent in mild stress. "

It was Frank Lloyd Wright who said: “Television is chewing gum for the eyes.” Does it follow that chewing gum is television for the mouth? If so then these new double duty chewing gums--exotically flavored, teeth whitening, breath freshening and strengthening gums-- could be called the PBS for the mouth—entertainingly flavorful and also good for you.


http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/119826.php
http://www.wrigley.com/wrigley/about/about_story_gum.asp
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2006-03-28-wrigley-gum-institute_x.htm