Chewing gum reduces stress and builds concentration!

Gum reduces stress and builds concentration, says Lisa Salmon

INCESSANT gum chewers — with Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson chief among them — could be onto something. Besides freshening your breath and improving dental health, new research has shown that chewing sugar-free gum helps people concentrate for longer, possibly by increasing blood flow to the brain — and previous studies have suggested it can also reduce chronic stress.

The most recent chewing gum study, published this month by researchers at Cardiff University, asked one group of people to chew gum and another not to as they completed a 30-minute audio memory task that involved listening to a list of numbers and spotting certain sequences. Those who chewed gum had quicker reactions and were more accurate than those who didn’t, especially towards the end of the task.