It may well give you minty-fresh breath, but chewing gum could also cause weight gain, new research suggests. Scientists have discovered that people who chew gum eat more high calorie sweet foods.
This is because the chemical responsible for the minty flavour of gum makes savoury foods, especially fruit and vegetables, taste unpleasant.
Co-author of the study, Christine Swoboda, a doctoral candidate in nutrition at Ohio State University, told Live Science ‘The chemical change is the same reason why when you brush your teeth and then drink orange juice, it tastes bad.
Scientists have discovered that people who chew gum eat more high-calorie, sweet foods
‘We were also interested in seeing whether this helps with weight loss.’
To carry out the study, Ms Swoboda and her colleague Jennifer Temple of the University of Buffalo, enrolled 44 volunteers.
Each candidate was asked to play a game in exchange for food. Some played for pieces of fruit, while others played for crisps and sweets.
I – Word Understanding
Weight gain – The condition of being obese
Savoury – attractive to the sense of taste or smell
Unpleasant – disagreeable
Doctoral candidate – an early-stage researcher at the beginning his/her research career
Carry out – to bring to a successful issue
II – Have your say
1.Good and Bad effects of chewing gum
Having no time to slow down and rest appropriately, the stomach and intestines may become exhausted. So, concerns about stomach burns, ulcers and risks of different cancers arise.
2.Bad breathe prevention, stress release, weight management, increases concentration and even alertness.
035 Chewing gum could make you FAT because the minty taste makes sugary food more tempting
