If you are addicted to chewing gum or just chomp on it a lot, try this healthier alternative that won’t use up valuable digestive enzymes and wreck your teeth long term.
When I was a kid, I loved to chew bubble gum. I remember becoming quite proficient at blowing very large bubbles at summer camp one year. From then on, chewing bubble gum became a favorite childhood pastime of mine.
While chewing gum once in a while is certainly not a cause for concern, chewing gum every single day as a habit definitely can be detrimental to health. As I covered in detail in a previous post about chewing gum, habitual gum chewing wastes valuable digestive enzymes and can contribute over time to TMJ and other jaw problems among other issues.
Fortunately, there is a very healthy chewing gum alternative to brands laced with aspartame or GMO sugar.
Even xylitol gum should be avoided on a regular basis as xylitol is produced by the heavily industrial process called sugar hydrogenation, the long term health effects of which are unknown. Xylitol also contributes to gut imbalance/candida problems, exacerbates acid reflux, and can trigger seizures in susceptible individuals.
In addition, oral surgeons at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas contend that too much gum chewing causes jaw stress. Dr. Sinn, a UT Southwestern oral surgeon, warns that jaw soreness, jaw “clicking” or pain in the jaw, head, or neck can be signs of TMJ syndrome and that gum chewing should be discontinued should such symptoms emerge.
Given that gum chewing is commonly used to relieve stress, Dr. Sinn suggests other methods for reducing tension such as squeezing a ball, relaxation techniques or regular exercise to avoid the risk of chronic jaw problems.
Probably the most important reason to abstain from chewing commercially made gum is that it releases mercury from dental amalgam fillings. A Swedish study found that people with silver fillings who chew gum for 5 hours or more each day had significantly higher levels of mercury in their blood and urine than those people with silver fillings who chewed gum infrequently.
Mercury levels in the blood, urine, and breath at exhalation increased in proportion to the number of silver fillings each study participant had.
So what to chew?
In this video, I show you a healthy chewing gum alternative that we use in our home when we just want something sweet and tasty to chomp on – honeycomb!
Have you tried chewing honeycomb before? If not, check out the honeycomb we like to chew as I describe the benefits you get from enjoying this age old practice. Chewing a piece of honeycomb is not only healthy, but it is good for you too because the chewing doesn’t last too long, it adds enzymes to the digestion rather than removing them and is safe for those with amalgams.
Honeycomb? How is that a replacement? I don’t have fillings do one thing…. I chew sugar free gum as I get bad dry mouth and trying not to smoke as much….do you honestly believe honeycomb is going to do anything other than make my teeth fall out through the sugar and put weight on? I also have a sluggish metabolism so chewing gum helps me digest food,
Honeycomb is not an alternative lol, fed up of seeing posts that claim they have an answer only to recommend ridiculous thing s like this
Licorice was another one, seriously was looking for alternatives, think I’ll just stick to the gum after all ????
Looks so yummy,but i can’t eat too much snacks,coz i don’t want to gain weight!
I dont chew gum, thank goodness, i have amalgam sealants so there’s less of it than in a true filling.
Stopped when my doc said chewing gum is basically tricking your body that food is coming (w/chewing, salivating, swallowing). The stomach acid & enzymes flow to aid digestion, except there is nothing to digest, leaving some with GI symptoms.
Store it in honey for indefinite time!
Just came back from Greece, this is what a server from our hotel gave my kids. Old news in Europe, I think. Cool stuff. Thanks for posting.
Love this stuff!