Why gum should not be banned in schools
by Daniel Xian
Students love it, teachers hate it -- this thing is gum. Despite the fact that one can see this under most desks, it has its benefits. The National Library of Medicine states that “Some 374 billion pieces of chewing gum are sold worldwide every year.” This means that someone in a year would chew an average of 49 pieces of gum. Schools should not take students’ ability to chew gum in class away. Gum benefits students by reducing stress, helping with hygiene, and improving memory.
Stress abounds in everyday life, especially to students with piling amounts of assignments. Gum has been a tried and true method of relieving stress. A study done by the National Center for Biotechnology Information shows us that “A two-week intervention with a student sample led to reduced stress and enhanced productivity.” Daily assignments from every class can be very stressful. This little piece of gum could improve how one feels. Studies show that having lower stress levels is generally better than higher stress levels. “High levels of social and emotional stress can dampen the immune system and promote inflammation, heart disease and premature aging,” says the NY Times. All of this is not good for one’s health which is why chewing gum should not only be allowed but encouraged. Gum not only can help with emotional parts but also physical parts of the body.
A shocking 30% of Americans don’t brush their teeth on a daily basis. That means there is a good chance that someone reading this has not brushed their teeth today. Although gum isn't a permanent solution, chewing it can help. The American Dental Association does in fact recognize that sugarless gum can prevent tooth decay. “Chewing sugarless gum increases the flow of saliva in your mouth, which can help dilute sugars and food particles,” says Hilary Mayne who is a doctor of dental surgery. After a lunch break, students can just throw some gum in their mouth and help clean their teeth. Although not an actual sport, chewing gum does burn calories and improve jaw muscles. Drooling is something that we all don’t like. This is because your jaw muscles aren’t holding your mouth closed when you sleep. When gum is chewed, it is constantly moving your jaw thus building muscle. When one has more jaw muscle, then they can enjoy a better night's sleep. Having jaw muscles can also be viewed by some as attractive.
Schools in today's world require lots of memorization and gum can help with this. “Chewing gum can improve memory, say UK psychologists. They found that people who chewed throughout tests of both long-term and short-term memory produced significantly better scores than people who did not.” For students, chewing gum can improve test scores which could get them into their dream jobs. This also benefits the school that they go to, a school with high test scores would be viewed as a successful school. Chewing gum also increases blood flow to the brain, increasing cognitive functions. The blood flow has been shown to be an increase of 25-40%.
Swallowing gum is a controversial topic. Lots of people say it's bad for you, but in reality it's not. Although gum can not be digested, it will not be stuck in your body. It would just go right through your digestive system and nothing will happen. Gum is a very cheap and easy substance to get your hands on, and it can provide amazing benefits. From simple hygiene to relieving stress, this magical substance should be adopted by all schools.
Bibliography
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www.thehealthy.com/aging/mind-memory/benefits-of-chewing-gum/.
Mayne, Hilary. “SITE.” Does Chewing Gum Actually Help Clean Your Teeth?, 26AD,
O'connor, Anahad. “Stress Can Make You Sick. Take Steps to Reduce It.” The New York Times,
The New York Times, 8 Oct. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/10/08/well/mind/stress-can-make-you-sick-take-steps-to-reduce-it.html.
Smith, Andrew P. “Chewing Gum and Stress Reduction.” Journal of Clinical and Translational
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T, Imfeld. “Chewing Gum--Facts and Fiction: a Review of Gum-Chewing and Oral Health.”
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Association of Oral Biologists, U.S. National Library of Medicine, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10759416/#:~:text=Some%20374%20billion%20pieces%20of,is%20chewed%20for%2030%20minutes.
Young, Emma. “Chewing Gum Improves Memory.” New Scientist, New Scientist, 13 Mar. 2002,
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