Is chewing gum bad for you? The good news, and how to pick a great one

Good news first: for most adults, chewing gum is a perfectly fine habit. People have been chewing tree sap for thousands of years, and a piece after lunch is still one of the simplest small pleasures going.

The trick is picking a good gum and chewing it sensibly. Here are five easy habits, plus a quick way to spot the healthiest gum on the shelf.

1. Pick sugar free

This is the big one. Gum made with sugar keeps sugar in your mouth for as long as you chew, so if you chew gum regularly, sugar-free is the way to go. The American Dental Association's consumer site has a friendly page on chewing gum if you'd like their take.¹

2. Choose a sweetener you like

Sugar-free gum still needs something sweet. The usual options are sugar alcohols (xylitol, sorbitol, maltitol, erythritol) and high-intensity sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose, acesulfame potassium). Many gums use a mix.

Everyone has preferences here. Some people skip aspartame, some prefer a single sweetener, some like to know exactly what's in the pack. Read the sweetener line and pick what you're comfortable with. (Ours is xylitol only, and we wrote a whole guide to it.)

3. Be kind to your jaw

Your jaw does the work, so give it a rest when it asks for one. If your jaw clicks or aches, chew less and mention it to your dentist. About 20 minutes after a meal is plenty.

4. Keep a sensible count

There's no magic number, but a few pieces a day is a very different thing from a pack a day. For our gum, the directions are: chew 1–2 pieces after meals, up to 3 times a day, for about 20 minutes. That's six pieces at most.

Sugar alcohols in large amounts can upset some stomachs, so if yours is sensitive, stay toward the low end. And chewing means swallowing a little extra air, which some people notice as bloating. Easy fix: fewer pieces.

5. Keep it away from dogs and little ones

Two quick house rules for any home with gum in it:

• Dogs: xylitol is toxic to dogs. If your gum contains it, keep the pack sealed and out of reach, and call your vet or an animal poison control center right away if a dog eats any.
• Little kids: gum is a choking risk for small children. Ours is made for adults.

So what's the healthiest gum?

Rather than crown a winner, here's what to look for on the back of the pack. A gum that ticks these boxes is a great pick:

1. Sugar free.
2. A sweetener you're happy with, named plainly.
3. A named gum base, so you know whether it's a tree sap or a synthetic. (Curious? Here's what gum is made of.)
4. An ingredient list you can read in full, with nothing tucked inside a "blend."
5. Claims that match the label.
6. A flavor you love, because the gum you enjoy is the gum you'll actually chew after meals.

Want to see how ours measures up? The full label is on our product page.

Is chewing gum bad for your teeth?

Sugary gum chewed often isn't a friend to teeth, which is why sugar-free is the go-to. The ADA's chewing gum page linked above covers sugar-free gum in more detail. And whatever you chew, keep brushing, flossing and seeing your dentist.

Questions people ask

Is chewing gum good for you? It's a habit rather than a health treatment, and a pleasant one. Plenty of people like a piece after meals, for the fresh taste or when they can't brush right away. Those are all great reasons.

What is the unhealthiest gum? Generally, the one dentists worry about most is gum with sugar near the top of the ingredient list, chewed all day.

Is sugar-free gum bad for you? For most adults in normal amounts, no. Keep an eye on the count if your stomach is sensitive to sugar alcohols, keep xylitol gum away from dogs, and rest your jaw when it asks.

Why do some dentists say not to chew gum? Usually because of sugar or a jaw issue. If yours has said so, ask what they have in mind for you specifically.

Our gum, for the record

Here's ours against that checklist. SMILE is sugar free and sweetened with xylitol only. The base is a proprietary blend of chicle, mastic, spruce, myrrh, and arabic. All 12 ingredients are printed in full: Xylitol, Chicle Base, Gum Arabic, Hydroxyapatite, Rice Flour, Flavor, Spruce Gum, Coconut Oil, Calcium Bentonite Clay, Myrrh Gum, Spirulina, Carnauba Wax. And the flavor is extra fresh peppermint, because a gum you love doesn't get left at the bottom of the bag.

If it passes your test, come take a look. Your first order comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Got a question we didn't cover? Write to hello@yawana.shop.

Keep reading: Xylitol gum: the sweet science · What is gum made of?

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