Chewing on Plastic? Yum!
I’m not a big gum chewer. I can keep a stick of gum in my mouth for about five minutes, just enough time to suck all the flavor out, before I’m tired of chewing and starting to get that chewing gum headache.
So it was no hardship to let go of chewing gum when I gave up products in plastic packaging.
Still, if someone offered me a piece of gum, I might have accepted the random chew here and there. Yeah, I knew it contained artificial flavors and wasn’t good for me. And I always felt guilty if it came in one of these:
But after reading some information that reader Eleanor Sommer forwarded me yesterday, I won’t be putting any of that stuff in my mouth anymore.
Gum is made from plastic.
According to Chemistry.About.com, chewing gum was originally made from tree sap called chicle, a natural rubber, and sometimes various waxes. But…
After World War II, chemists learned to make synthetic rubber, which came to replace most natural rubber in chewing gum (e.g., polyethylene and polyvinyl acetate). The last U.S. manufacturer to use chicle is Glee Gum.
Polyvinyl acetate? What’s that? According to the article “Behind the Label: Chewing Gum” published this week in The Ecologist, polyvinyl acetate (a type of plastic) is manufactured using vinyl acetate, a chemical shown to cause tumors in lab rats. In fact, in 2008 the Canadian government was so concerned about vinyl acetate used in the production of chewing gum that they added it to a list of substances to be considered toxic. However, according to the article, government regulators were forced to back down due to industry pressure.
But is all chewing gum made from polyvinyl acetate? If the label lists “gum base” as an ingredient, it may contain “petroleum, lanolin, glycerin, polyethylene, polyvinyl acetate, petroleum wax, stearic acid, or latex,” according to the Vegetarian Resource Group. In fact, check out the US FDA’s complete list of possible ingredients that can be included in gum base: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=172.615
The trouble is that we as consumers have no way of knowing which of these ingredients, if any, are included in a particular gum base because manufacturers are not required to go into any more detail!
And a few more points to ponder before I move on…
1) Where does (plastic) chewing gum go after it’s ABC (already been chewed)? Is it flushed down toilets? Washed down storm drains? Hmm… just one more source of non-biodegradable plastic in our oceans?
2) What happens when we swallow it? Does it eventually make its way out? Or do all of us have plastic in our stomachs? Just wondering…
Natural chewing gum
So, does chewing gum without plastic exist?
02/25/2017 UPDATE: At the time this article was originally written in January of 2010, there were no completely plastic-free chewing gum choices. Since then, a few have come on the market. But whether or not they catch on is another story. I will continue to update this page as new information becomes available.
Peppersmith: In 2012, I discovered this English brand of chewing gum (with both plastic-free packaging and plastic-free ingredients) and touted it heavily. Sadly, in 2014, the company reformulated the chewing gum to include plastic in its gum base, so I can no longer recommend it. Read more about Peppersmith chewing gum here.
Simply Gum: In 2014, I learned of Simply Gum. It is still on the market with plastic-free gum base and packaging. The only downside is that all of the Simply Gum flavors are sweetened with sugar, which many gum chewers are trying to avoid. Read more about Simply Gum here.
Green Tree Gum Co: In 2015, I reviewed plastic-free, sugar-free Green Tree gum. Since then, the company has gone out of business and the website has been taken down. You can read my original review of Green Tree chewing gum here.
Spry Gum: Many readers have mentioned Spry gum to me because the gum base is reported to be all natural. So I emailed the company a few days after this post was published and received the following response, “We currently use a gum base that is derived from the sap of jelutong trees in Southeast Asia. We have found this source to be better than the synthetic one derived from petroleum by-products since it does not stick to dental work.” That’s great, but I have not reviewed or recommended Spry because the packaging and containers are all made from plastic.
Xylichew: Readers have also mentioned Xylichew, but like Spry, it only comes in a plastic bottle or a plastic blister pack, so I don’t plan to review or recommend it.
Peelu: Contains synthetic chemicals. According to account specialist Phillip Ellingson, the gum base “is very similar to any gum base you would find in any gum. There are plasticizers and elasticizers, which give the gum the chewy consistency, but you do not swallow those ingredients. The gum base specifically for our gums is not all natural, but the ingredients you ingest are. The Peelu dental gum is latex and petroleum free.” [05/21/2012 Update: In a follow-up email, Phillip confirms that the gum base does contain polyvinyl acetate.]
Chicza: A certified organic natural brand whose gum base is made with 100% chicle. However, it does contain sugar. At the time I originally wrote this post, it was not available in the U.S. It’s now available in the United States, as well as Mexico, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom. It’s also available on Amazon. As for the packaging, according to the Amazon seller, “Picture a chocolate bar- there are 8 squares of gum, but all one piece (you sort of break off each piece you want to chew) and that one piece of 8 is in plastic packaging.”
Glee Gum: As of the original writing of this post, Glee Gum was touted as being made with natural chicle; however, the company also included plastics in its gum base. (See my original write up of Glee Gum below.) Since then, Glee has reformulated both its sugared and sugar-free gums to be completely plastic-free! Read about all new plastic-free Glee Gum here.
History of Glee Gum’s gum base
What follows is my original posting about plastic in Glee Gum. I’m leaving it here for historical archive purposes. Click the link above to read my review of the new, plastic-free version.
According to the About.com article, Glee Gum still uses natural chicle in its gum base. So I investigated the Glee Gum website, and I found this description of the product’s gum base:
What is in your gum base?
Our gum base is a mix of chicle (see above), natural gums, rubbers, resins, and waxes. The exact formula is (unfortunately!) confidential. It is safe to chew, but, like all chewing gum, we don’t recommend that you swallow!
What exactly are the resins in Glee Gum? From the description above, I can’t tell whether the gum base contains plastic and/or petroleum-based wax or not. The site does tout the omission of artificial flavors, sweeteners, colors, and preservatives, which is awesome. But is the gum base completely natural?
I recalled that when my nieces were young, I bought them a “Make Your Own Rainforest Chewing Gum” kit that contained natural chicle as its base. Googling the product now, I see that it is also made by the Glee Gum company, and includes the same gum base as their chewing gums. So I still don’t know what else is in it.
I called and left a message for Glee Gum. I have not heard back yet, but I’ll be sure and post an update here when I get an answer.
UPDATE: I just spoke with Deborah Schimberg from Glee Gum. In fact, Glee’s gum base DOES contain polyvinyl acetate in addition to chicle. They are working on developing an all natural gum base with no synthetics. But at this point, she says, all gum manufacturers use synthetics in their gum base. And in fact, there are only a handful of gum base providers, and they won’t even provide complete information to the chewing gum manufacturers about ingredients.
Deborah is hoping to release the new gum base in 2010, but she has several concerns to deal with. Natural rubber, for example, could be an allergen for people with latex allergies. And there are concerns about other possible ingredients. But she said she’d let me know first thing when the new gum base is ready.
Deborah also told me about an English woman who wants to collect our already chewed gum and make gum drop bins out of it for collecting even more chewed gum. Please check out Gumdrop Ltd.
Regardless, the point is that until manufacturers are required to list all of the ingredients in their products, rather than using non-specific terms like “gum base,” “natural flavors,” or “fragrance,” or similarly, until they are required to list the ingredients in their plastic packaging, we can’t know for sure what substances we’re putting into our bodies and whether or not they’re truly safe.
You should look into mastic gum! 100% tree sap
I chewed a LOT of sugar free gum the last 25 years. I love hot cinnamon and I was hooked on Orbit for and then Dentyne Fire.
For some reason companies keep discontinuing cinnamon sugar free gum. I even emailed the corporations and never heard.
So I researched natural chicle from the chicle tree in Mexico. I sent away for a “sample” size which should last me for years. I tried chewing it plain today (I was going to make my own cinnamon and other flavors.).
It’s not bad tasting, and the chewing elasticity is quite awesome! I been chew the same tiny piece for the past 4.5 hours and it’s still enjoyable…something I never would do with commercial gum. The more I chew it the more it very slight honey.
I chew way too much gum to buy the other products listed. I have to live very inexpensively. I love natural products and so this is the way for me to go. I will experiment with stevia, or birch sugar, and find non alcoholic natural flavorings. I grow fennel, so I might try that first. Lots of experimenting ahead.
Do you have any reviews on Pur gum?
Hey guys Just Wanted to let you know Do NOT Swallow Gum! It is Harmful for your body. My 7 year old son was throwing up all night. Sooooo….
Just don’t swallow it. (PERIOD)
I am looking for plastic-free gumballs. Any idea what gum base Tree Hugger Gum uses? They use natural food colors and chicle so it looks promising.
Does Spry Gum still have all- natural gum base? (Asking in 2019) I am looking because Spry is the only plastic-free gum that is being sold in my city. (Excluding Amazon and online purchases). Also,I heard of Train Gum and was wondering if it is being sold in Canada? It is all-natural but their website is down i think.
I have a Master’s degree in polymer chemistry and guarantee you that simply because a plastic’s repeat unit (monomer) is considered dangerous says nothing about the polymerized version of that monomer. For example, ethylene glycol is a highly toxic chemical found in anti-freeze that can kill within minutes. Polyethylene glycol (hundreds or thousands of Ethylene glycol subunits covalently bound together) is what most pill capsules are made out of i.e. it’s the most inert material around. The same hold true for the difference between vinyl acetate and polyvinyl acetate. Even as the polymer degrades it will turn into acetic acid (vinegar) and polyvinyl alcohol (an FDA-approved food thickener), so you have abosuletly no rat tumors to worry about.
Chew in peace!
Hi, you may be interested in The Humble Co.’s line of chewing gums. They are dentist recommended, sugar and plastic free, contain 5 natural ingredients, vegan, and come in eco-friendly packaging!
Chewsy Gum is plastic-free and vegan: http://chewsygum.co.uk/
Hi Beth,
What do you look for in a natural chewing gum? Would love to hear your suggestion on this. I found this https://www.simplygum.com/#6ingredients as I am deciding to either quit on gum or stick to single brand that is free from aspartame and synthetics.
Hi. I reviewed Simply Gum here: http://myplasticfreelife.com/2014/03/give-away-truly-plastic-free-chewing-gum-in-plastic-free-packaging/
It’s fine if you don’t mind gum with sugar. Many people want sugar-free gum. Just recently, Glee Gum changed their base to one that is plastic-free. They do offer a sugar-free version sweetened with xylitol. I can’t vouch for it yet because I haven’t tried it. They are sending me some samples, and I’ll be reviewing it soon.
Order natural chicle – it’s the sap from the chicle tree in Mexico. The company is very nice and will send you recipes if you inquire about chicle, and many links …including the history of chicle.
Someone will ask for the link so here it is and I have nothing to do with the company. I just opened the package I ordered and enjoy it.
https://www.natural-chicle.com/
Thanks for the info Mary Anne!
Ive been wanting to make my own chicle based gum for a while now but its so difficult to find chicle in pure form. I’ll let you all know how it goes
Six years after you wrote this blog, I found it while searching for natural gum base. I also found the Glee web site, and they’re now using an all natural gum base. This is what they say: After years of research, we’re so excited to debut our new gum base recipe. It’s 100% natural, made predominantly of chicle with just three additional, natural ingredients: calcium carbonate, candelilla wax, and a pinch of dehydrated citrus peels. We are transitioning all of our Glee Gum flavors to this new gum base. (You can find the new gum base in our Glee Gum Pops as well). We’re also rolling out a brand new look, with the gum base ingredients listed right on the label.
That sounds pretty exciting, especially that they’re being transparent in their ingredient list. It needs to be legislation, though, so all manufacturers have to list ALL of their ingredients. We have a right to know what we’re consuming, or putting on our faces and bodies…
The Peelu Co. Chewing Gum doesn’t contain any plastics.
According to their customer service, it actually does.
I stopped using hairspray years ago. Now, the only “holding” product I use is Second Life Hair Butter from MadeOn Hard Lotion: https://store.hardlotion.com/collections/face-hair-lips/products/second-life-hair-butter
Yep, I reviewed it in March! http://myplasticfreelife.com/2014/03/give-away-truly-plastic-free-chewing-gum-in-plastic-free-packaging/
Beth Terry Lnm I agree about Spry’s packaging and hope they will replace those canisters w/cardboard soon. I’ll email and ask them to. Perhaps if we all do? In the meantime, at least the canisters can be re-purposed.
What about Zellies gum? I know they are stored in a plastic container, but has anyone searched their ingredients? Gum help my child with sensory processing disorder to focus. However, I certainly don’t want her consuming toxins!
sybren Thank you for finding this! Great information to have on hand. And stated very clearly in the text that manufacturers do not disclose their proprietary recipes.
chewing gum base is made of :
Elastomers, Resins, Plasticizers, Paraffin waxes and micro, Vegetable oils, Excipients ,
Filler, Emulsifiers, Sweeteners, Flavors, Other ingredients, Dyes, Antioxidants, Glycerol, Polishes,
and every manufacturer has his own special “recipe”
Source a pdf in dutch ( just run it through google translator), very detailed
Chewing gum, The Chemical Facts
by Martine ir Segers,
http://www.chemischefeitelijkheden.nl/Uploads/Magazines/CF-202-kauwgom.pdf
Beth Terry We must have had a misunderstanding. I did not mean to imply that you should chew gum made from synthetic polymers. I just wanted to state a fact that polymers are used in a lot more things than gum. And yes, some polymers are toxic i understand that, but a lot of the synthetic polymers in gum are not. If they were, they would not be able to sell them. One point that you brought up is that manufacturers are not required to disclose additives in gums? I was pretty sure the FDA required this. If i am incorrect – please inform me. Thanks!
The other point to consider is biodegradability
I was using an extreme example to point out the flaw in your logic. Your premise seems to be that since polymers are in other things I eat, it’s okay to chew gum made from synthetic polymers. But just as some chemicals are toxic, some polymers are toxic. And manufacturers are not required to disclose the additives, of which there could be any of several thousand, in synthetic plastics.
Jack, by your logic, it’s okay to eat cyanide because cyanide is a chemical and chemicals are in everything.
Sure, there are both natural and synthetic polymers. Most chewing gum is made from synthetic polymers with undisclosed ingredients. I’m not going to put it in my mouth. What you choose to do is your business.
Your reply makes no sense. Cyanide is CN-, not a polymer. No point in my statement did i say that you should eat poison. I was just informing you that polymers are in a lot more things then just chewing gum.
Hi. Sorry if there was a misunderstanding. Actually, the FDA does not require those ingredients to be disclosed to the public. Gum manufacturers can just call it “gum base” and do not have to tell us what ingredients are in it. And there are quite a few questionable chemicals that are allowed in food contact plastics. BPA, for example.
Plastics are polymers. Its not like your chewing on a grocery bag. Polymers – natural and synthetic, both of which are considered “plastics” – are in everything so you better stop eating a whole lot of other things too if your going to stop chewing gum.
sybren That’s cool. I know I can get beeswax in bulk without plastic. I wonder how chicle is sold.
The company sells to all the big gum MFRS using natural chicle.
Look on the website for the chicle used for “homemade” and ask questions. Ask them for the recipes, and any links for history and info on chicle. They are very nice.
Natural Chicle Gum Base | Healthy Products | Aboafsite Mexico
https://www.natural-chicle.com/
This is if you are up for making your natural gum at home. It seems very easy to do, and you can flavor your own naturally.
I am not connected to the company at all. Just passing on the info.
I just chewed a natural piece of chicle unflavored for almost 5 hours and it was enjoyable.
found this on making natural gum base from chisle , beewax aand vegetable oil
https://ourpastimes.com/make-gum-base-4487693.html
@Lnm The problem with Spry is the packaging, which is all plastic. I want to find all natural gum in plastic-free packaging available in the U.S.
Oops. Should have read more closely. I thought this comment was left by someone at Glee… didn’t realize you were copying an email they sent to you. Okay, I will contact them about the new formula.
March 12, 2013
Hi Lena,
Thanks for your continued interest! Our gum base is unfortunately NOT yet 100% natural. We hope to offer new and improved, 100% natural gum base later this year. We can email you a notification as soon as we have it. (We will also want to shout it to the world!). In the meantime, all the digestible parts of Glee Gum continue to be all-natural- the sugar, the flavors, the coloring, etc. Thanks again for asking.
Yours in Glee,
Molly
Molly Lederer
Verve, inc. ~ 305 Dudley St. ~ Providence, RI 02907
p: 401-351-6415 ~ f: 401-272-1204
Ooops, I meant March 1, 2013
This is fantastic news! Yes, yes please email me when the all natural gum is available. I would love to review it. beth [at] myplasticfreelife [dot] com. Right now, I have only found this gum which comes in a cardboard box and doesn’t contain plastic in the gum, but it’s only sold in England. http://myplasticfreelife.com/2012/05/peppersmith-makes-chewing-gum-without-plastic/
And will it comes in a cardboard box without plastic packaging?
Im so glad my friend shared your page with me. I have recently watched the movie “Bag It” and it opened my eyes up wide to how disgusting and horrible plastic is. I have been going nuts getting rid of plastic from my life wherever possible. I’ve also watched a few other very informative and eye opening documentaries like “the inconvenient truth”, “food inc”, “the future of food”, “no impact man”, “the cove” and “sharkwater”… I am never buying meat ever again, I am doing my very best to buy local and organic from now on and am not going to live in a bubble anymore thinking everything is OK.
You don’t have to *not* buy meat because of factory farms and CAFOs–there are alternatives! It’s called pasture-raised. Do some research and look for local farms. You may be surprised by what’s around you that you never knew was there. 😉
Here’s an example of what I mean: http://www.polyfacefarms.com/
This is disconcerning… I never used to be a big chewing gum consumer, until I got medicines that totally dried out my all saliva. Now chewing gum is the only thing that keeps my mouth bearable, artificial saliva and other gels just dont last for more than 3 seconds. 🙁 I have tried the all natural gums, but they just don’t last. But I may reconsider my choices, it is bad enough that I have to take this medicine that has so many severe side effects on my body (wish it was only the saliva….) but I should not be adding any extra toxins!
Try eating fresh honeycomb. The honey is delicious and the wax that is left over is very similar to chewing gum (if a bit more crumbly). You can often find it at specialty stores and co-ops.
Oh, God. I so want to not have toxins in my body. And here I was chewing gum to keep me occupied. What now? Is there no end to this poisonous commercial world we live in?
IF there’s a buck to be made…:-/
I had a teacher tell my class that swallowing gum was safe because our stomach acid could still digest it. What I’m guessing he didn’t know is that we would be swallowing plastic. Yikes!
My local spice shop carries mastic (resin from a pistachio tree in Chio, Greece) in a stainless steel container. (The resin is wrapped in plastic… but it’s probably the next best thing to not chewing gum)
Another great random pick from the archive in my twitter feed today!
Of course, this one worries me a lot because I have been a big gum chewer for years. I thought it was chicle, not plastic. Now I am going to have to rethink my whole stance on gum.
Thanks for the info Beth
I have been a gum chewer for many years until I learned about plastic being in gum. I called the Wrigley Corporation today and asked about plastic being in there product. The person I spoke to did not know anything about this and defended the product to no end. Also, I was told in so many words that I must be crazy and that he never heard this aligation before – I quickly spoke-up and stated it’s all over the internet look it up.
I am all about change especially after the fact of having breast cancer, I want to prevent as much as possible. I have to have some contol in what is going to go into my mouth ! There are so many plastic products, it is overwhelming to say the least !! I can take advice from this web site and slowly come to a differant awarness – it will take time. Needless to say as of today all of the plastic that is toxic is getting elimanted in my household. I will have to pick-up one habit at a time from now on. What a challenge ! Help !
Hey Jenn, I haven’t gotten an update. Will you call and find out for me? I have a billion things on my To-Do list, but I want the answer!
I had no idea, I am so disappointed! I was letting my 5 year old chew the Spry gum because his dentist recommended the xylitol and I thought it was natural based on ingredients, just didn’t realize about the gum base. The gum keeps him from sucking his thumb. 🙁 Guess I will just have to wait and see if Glee can make their gum without the plastics.
WOW…I talk alot at work (hairstylist) and have always chewed gum..My mouth gets dry from talking so it has become what I do. Last year I started thinking about how I try to be so health, yet what about all the chemicals in the gum I chew? That made me nervous so I cut waaaay down. With all the talking though, again, my mouth would get so dry. I don’t always have a chance to stop and drink water.. so I started chewing again.
After reading this article I AM DONE!
thank you.. I will figure out something for my dry mouth!!!!
I had no idea that chewing gum can be so dangerous! They are always talking about how dangerous cigarettes are but I doubt they realize that gum contains chemicals known to cause cancer in rats. I will be switching to mints.
Hi there. Found this post interesting. Have you heard of Pur gum? Do you know if they’re any better?
Thanks!
Hi Kim. It’s impossible to know from the ingredients list on the web site whether this one is made from plastic because it just says, “gum base.” I sent and email to the company asking the question. But pretty much whenever you see “gum base,” that means plastic.
Bubble gums do have the substance called resin which makes it more like chewy and doesn’t dissolve. You would not surely swallow one because It will be hard for you to digest it. So its not recommended to swallow
I stopped chewing gum as soon as I read this. Unbelievable, yet so believable. My fiancee chews gum to help quit smoking, and my mom tried to convince me that there’s no plastic. I just forwarded this link to her, hopefully she’ll rethink gum!
I am so disappointed to hear about Glee Gum–thought it was a natural alternative. I hate that you cannot get the truth anywhere.
I only chew gum when I fly, to help avoid ear pain. Sending this article to others I know though, especially those with kids. Thanks so much.
Xylitol is made using a nickel catalyst. Every company’s report will contain some amount of nickel. I am interested in Glee’s new all-natural gum base this year. I only keep gum for breath emergencies.
This is appalling. Thank you for this insight…I won’t be chewing gum any time soon.
I haven’t chewed gum in ages. It’s not healthy on another level. Chewing is the first stage in digestion and chewing gum is a false alarm that food is to follow the chewing, which causes the stomach to release stomach acids. If no food comes down to digest, the acid can cause ulcers and other problems.
Ewww. I had never even thought about it….
There are a lot worse things/habits out there to be concerned about.
‘Big bad gum chemicals’..boo hoo!
Besides
You’re just gonna die anyway.
I remember hearing something about a component in chewing gum that they were going to ban, and then the whole thing just went away. That seems to happen a lot these days.
When I was little, the gum came in little foil and paper packages with paper wrappers over foil liners. Candy bars came with paper wrappers over foil too. Now everything has to be wrapped in plastic. Back then, when you were done chewing the gum, you could fold the wrappers into jewelry. I can remember seeing many necklaces, rings and bracelets made from gum wrappers although I never was able to chew enough gum to save up enough to make anthing bigger than a ring.
Yeah – yuch. It hit me some months ago ‘what is gum made of anyways?’ mostly because I wanted to know what “Bubble Gum” flavor really consisted of. Turns out even the flavor is chemicals – yuck! Many speculate the bubble gum flavor is a mix of cherry, banana, vanilla and spearamint. Okay, enough of that – but I learned gum is plastic! Safe or not I stopped chewing it right away – I don’t know what else I thought it could possibly be. I don’t let my daughter chew it either.
Good article, Emily
Creepy! I’ve never been a gum-chewer, but if I am ever tempted- never again!
Almost no one knows this, but I haven’t chewed gum since I was about 8 because of the germ factor- (everyone takes it out of their mouth with their hands to throw it away, and then proceed to touch everything else around them without washing their hands) so I love this.
I just don’t know how to break it to my almost 70 year old dad though who has chewed at a minimum 1 full pack of gum a day for my entire 38 year long life! The only smell that I associate with him is chewing gum. I’m pretty sure he won’t change, nonetheless, I feel compelled to send him the link.
When I Googled “allo natural chewing gum” looking for the brands that my coop sewlls, I got a load of Glee Gum references. Wise geek misinforms us :
“One brand of natural chewing gum, Glee Gum, is perfect for gum chewers with … In addition, the gum base is made from all-natural chicle. Chicle is sap that is harvested from rainforest trees in Central America called Sapodilla trees using it supports the local economy and protects the Sapodilla trees from clear cutting. All the rubbers, glazes, waxes and flavors come from natural plant sources – without the use of any chemicals or animal by-products.
Another brand of natural chewing gum is Xylichew Gum. It uses a different form of natural sweetener, xylitol. Xylitol is harvested from various fruits and hardwood trees. It actually has been proven to fight dental decay and even repair tiny cavities. It does not leave an aftertaste, but combines well with other natural ingredients in natural chewing gum. ”
Spry gum contains the same “gum base” and is touted as all natural.
What a mess.
I am a gum chewer since it keeps me focused. I tried Glee and liked the taste but after awhile the gum falls apart.
Thanks for bring this to my attention. Now, what am I going to chew to keep me focused. Pen caps are out of the question.
Nice to know my gum brand is OK (Glee). And mints. I love breath mints.
ugh…. that is gross. and what’s the point really of choosing a gum that “might have” less plastic?
I used to LOVE chewing gum, until I started having jaw problems. Who knew that chewing gum is the #1 thing to avoid for jaw health? also- the juices that they release seriously hurt my stomach……
Instead of choosing the “lesser” evils, i’m just gonna continue avoiding gum. and forward this article to my fiance… he is still a gum chewer!
The Jaw problem is TMJ. The gum chewing is actually good for digestion as it increases saliva. But that also depends on what you chewing too. I never had a problem with stomach issues and I can go through 8 pieces of sugar free gum a day.
I don’t chew gum often. It gives me a headache, too. Sometimes, it even makes me gag.
I think I may print this out and hang it under my “No Gum!” sign in my classroom 🙂
Thank you very much for considering Glee!
We’re working hard to make our gum base more naturally.
Our boxes are made with recycled cardboard– no blister packs!
We avoid plastic whenever possible ’cause of its many drawbacks.
Gum is not yet perfect, and perhaps it never shall be.
But if you want to chew gum, we sure hope you choose Glee!
When I was little my parents told me not to swallow my gum because a gum tree would grow in my stomach. I think they did that so I wouldn’t swallow gum but I did and it gave it nightmares.
Maybe that’s why I’m not much of a gum chewer either.
Ew. That’s pretty gross.
Unbelievable… I had not clue….I WAS a gum chewer….thanks so much for the insight.. I love your site and stories.
Amy
Hi Beth! Wow! Who would have thought? Great article.
I switched to Glee Gum since I started our all natural journey. Rootin’ for Glee! I love their gum and hope they can keep it REAL.
Happy Friday and weekend to you! 🙂
I’m a chewing gum hater and always have been. When I was thinking about what my criteria for romantic partners was, I came up with 1. doesn’t smoke and 2. doesn’t chew gum. Disgusting tacky habit.
I LOVE to find out that something I can’t stand is bad for our health and bad for the environment, too!
I have jaw issues so I don’t chew gum often and if I do I get Glee gum. 🙂
Yuck. I quit chewing gum a couple years ago, but I still sometimes have dreams where it’s stuck in my mouth and I wake up completely grossed out. I felt that it was making me sick; I chewed 5 or 6 pieces a day when I was a food server to keep my mouth fresh for when I spoke to customers. When I left my last serving job I gave it up and haven’t looked back since. There’s better ways to have fresh breath! Thanks for the investigation! 🙂