Study reveal why chewing gum might actually help with focus and stress relief

Humans person been chewing gum for thousands of years — agelong aft the spirit fades and without immoderate wide nutritional benefit.

The wont dates backmost astatine slightest 8,000 years to Scandinavia, wherever radical chewed birch bark transportation to soften it into a glue for tools. Other past cultures, including the Greeks, Native Americans and the Maya, besides chewed histrion resins for pleasance oregon soothing effects, National Geographic precocious reported.

In the precocious 19th and aboriginal 20th centuries, William Wrigley Jr. transformed chewing gum from a novelty into a wide user wont done relentless and innovative marketing. His brands, including Juicy Fruit and Spearmint, promoted gum arsenic a mode to calm nerves, curb hunger and enactment focused.

COMMON DENTAL HEALTH ISSUE MAY HINT AT MORE DANGEROUS MEDICAL CONDITION

"Are you worried? Chew gum," an nonfiction from 1916 said, according to Kerry Segrave's publication "Chewing Gum successful America, 1850-1920: The Rise of an Industry." "Do you prevarication awake astatine night? Chew gum," it continued. "Are you depressed? Is the satellite against you? Chew gum."

Advertisements person agelong framed chewing gum arsenic a instrumentality for accent alleviation and intelligence sharpness. (Keystone View Company/FPG/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

In the 1940s, a survey recovered chewing resulted successful little tension, but couldn't accidental why. "The gum-chewer relaxes and gets much enactment done," the New York Times wrote astatine the clip astir the study's results.

Gum became an aboriginal signifier of wellness, and companies are trying to revive that thought contiguous arsenic gum income decline, according to National Geographic.

GARLIC EXTRACT RIVALS TRADITIONAL MOUTHWASH FOR DENTAL HYGIENE IN SURPRISING NEW REVIEW

But lone present are scientists yet opening to recognize the biology down those long-standing beliefs.

Chewing gum whitethorn concisely impact attraction and stress-related encephalon activity, according to studies. (iStock)

A 2025 reappraisal by researchers astatine the University of Szczecin successful Poland analyzed much than 3 decades of brain-imaging studies to analyse what happens wrong the encephalon erstwhile radical chew gum. Using MRI, EEG and near-infrared spectroscopy research, the authors recovered that chewing alters encephalon enactment successful regions tied to movement, attraction and accent regulation.

The findings assistance clarify wherefore the seemingly pointless task tin consciousness calming oregon focusing, adjacent erstwhile the spirit has faded.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER

Chewing gum activated not lone the brain's centrifugal and sensory networks progressive successful chewing, but besides higher-order regions linked to attention, alertness and affectional control, the reappraisal found. EEG studies recovered little shifts successful brain-wave patterns linked to heightened alertness and what researchers telephone "relaxed concentration."

Humans person chewed gum for pleasance for thousands of years, according to reports. (iStock)

"If you're doing a reasonably boring task for a agelong time, chewing seems to beryllium capable to assistance with concentration," Crystal Haskell-Ramsay, a prof of biologic science astatine Northumbria University, told National Geographic.

The reappraisal besides supports earlier findings that gum chewing tin easiness stress, but lone successful definite situations. In laboratory experiments, radical who chewed gum during mildly stressful tasks specified arsenic nationalist speaking oregon intelligence mathematics often reported little anxiousness levels than those who didn't.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE HEALTH STORIES

Chewing gum did not, however, consistently trim anxiousness successful high-stress aesculapian situations, specified arsenic instantly earlier surgery, and it offered nary wide payment erstwhile participants faced unsolvable problems designed to induce frustration.

Some studies suggest chewing gum tin trim accent successful mild situations, but not utmost ones. (iStock)

Across aggregate studies, radical who chewed gum did not retrieve lists of words oregon stories amended than those who didn't, the researchers besides found, and immoderate boost successful attraction faded soon aft chewing stopped.

Gum whitethorn simply provender the tendency to fidget, experts suspect.

TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ

"Although these effects are often short-lived, the scope of outcomes … underscores chewing gum's capableness to modulate encephalon relation beyond elemental oral centrifugal control," the researchers wrote.

"However, astatine this time, the neural changes associated with gum chewing cannot beryllium straight linked to the affirmative behavioral and functional outcomes observed successful studies," they added.

A 2025 reappraisal analyzed decades of MRI, EEG and near-infrared spectroscopy studies connected gum chewing. (iStock)

Future probe should code longer-term impacts, isolate spirit oregon accent variables and research imaginable therapeutic applications, the scientists said.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

The findings besides travel with caveats beyond encephalon science. Although sugar-free gum whitethorn assistance trim cavities, Fox News Digital has antecedently reported that dentists pass acids, sweeteners and excessive chewing whitethorn harm teeth oregon trigger different broadside effects.

Fox News Digital has reached retired to the study's authors for comment.