You have probably heard more than once, that whenever you swallow gum it will stay in your stomach for seven years, but what about those people who swallow gum all the time? They seem fine. Then again everyone says it so it must be true, right? If not then where did this whole myth come from? Gum is by no means a recent invention however many people are concerned that it's bad for you to swallow. Because of this it is most likely that some parents have told their children not to swallow the gum that they chew, and this myth eventually got around and became very widespread.
According to Snopes.com the reason that some would be convinced that gum is bad for you is the fact that gum is designed not to break down when you chew on it. It is made up of chemicals that resist the digestive properties in your saliva. This is probably the reason people think that gum would take so long to digest.
So, does gum really take seven years to digest? Howstuffworks.com has the answer and it's no, gum does not stay in your stomach for seven years. Most of the gum can be digested along with the rest of your food. Although the gum doesn't get fully digested it does not stay in your stomach for seven years. Even though it never fully breaks down, it stays in your stomach just as long as the rest of your food.
Here is an interesting podcast where you can hear the myth get disproven.
Sources
http://www.snopes.com/oldwives/chewgum.asp
http://health.hwostuffworks.com/gum-seven-years.htm
Tags: Gum, Myths, Seven Years
5 comments:
I thought that gum took 7 years to digest when i was little. so i was always afraid to swallow gum and if i did accidentally swallow it, i would mentally add 7 years to my age and vow to not swallow more gum until then. Now that i think about it, it was kind of stupid. I think you mentioned that gum takes a little longer than regular food but doesn't take 7 years. So how long does it take to digest exactly?
It takes about 24 hours. By the way I used to think that too, until I looked it up.
I'm just like Kitkat, I used to think gum took 7 years to digest. I even remember a time when I was maybe 8 and we gave a little kid at my babysitters gum for the first time and we warned her not to swallow it because of this myth. Looking back at it now I think I was crazy for saying that but who didn't believe it when they were little? Another flaw with this myth I have to question is if it really did take 7 years to digest where would it go? I know that sounds weird but how could something stay in your stomach for eight years.
I also belived it was really bad to swallow your gum, but it's good to know that it eventually leaves! And I agree that this seems unreal, because the gum would not have anywhere to go... However I guess when people tell you things over and over, you start to believe it.
I thought that swallowing your gum was bad for you also! My sister once told me that a "gum" tree would grow in my stomach and I believed her for I was relatively small. I am very glad to know that there will be no trees growing in my stomach. If gum takes 24 hours to digest, do you know how long it takes normal food to digest?
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