Is swallowing chewing gum bad for you?

[omblod]

We've all been told the old wives tales as kids e.g; if you swallow chewing gum it'll wrap round your heart and kill you, or it'll give you appendicitis! However, is swallowing chewing gum, actually, in anyway bad for you?

[druiaghtagh]

just like anything else you eat and swallow, it goes through your digestive system and nowhere near your heart, so it is just an 'old wives tale !! '

[omblod]

Thanks Druiaghtagh - I'm already aware that the heart isn't part of the digestive system. My point was, regardless of the old wives tales, are there any genuine medical reasons against swallowing chewing gum?

[comloulou]

I think the thing Mummies worry about is the gum getting stuck and choking their little darlings to death. Thats what you get for giving your kids a vile chewy sticky substance to rot their teeth and give them stomach ache....

[sddsddean]

I was told by a doctor friend of mine that if you do chew gum (which personally, I don't) always eat something after or swallow it. Apparantly, you chewing says to the brain "I have food in my mouth, prepare the stomach". So the brain says to the stomach "Start up the gastric juices". Now as these partly consist of hydrochloric acid, if nothing turns up it starts to digest whatever is around (eg the stomach). The stomach does have a special lining to prevent this, but after a long time it can wear thin and the results can be stomach ulcers, which are very nasty.

[ramrock007]

Chewing gum is not digestible but it definitely doesn't sit in your stomach for years. Gum actually might help things move through the bowels faster. if you want to know more watch the following link:http://www.bukisa.com/articles/48392_what-if-y ou-swallow-a-chewing-gum