How to tackle a sticky problem
There is no doubt that chewing gum is a major litter problem on our pavements and public places and its removal is a costly exercise.
However, placing a tax on chewing gum is not the best way to address this problem because it will not change people’s behaviour.
There is growing evidence that chewing sugarless gum benefits oral health. For example, it increases the flow of saliva, which leads to a reduction in dental decay.
It is also beneficial in reducing the discomfort caused by dry mouth often experienced by people who are on medication for various reasons.
These benefits will be compromised by any strategy that is likely to reduce the use of sugarless gum.
Thinking about the problem of gum litter in a logical way, we should be investing in prevention, not in clean-up. The problem is that some people dump their gum (and a lot of other things, too) on the streets.
Are we as a society going to tolerate this or are we going to enforce our litter laws? We already have a public policy with a penalty for dropping gum on the streets. However, we need to enforce it; just a few fines or prosecutions and word would be out that dropping your gum was illegal and unacceptable.
We can educate the public through schools and media campaigns (the chewing gum industry should have an obligation here) so that individuals are aware of their responsibilities in disposing of gum and other litter and that the community does not tolerate irresponsible littering.
We have never seen a strong media campaign to tackle the problem. Instead of placing a levy on gum for the clean-up the major gum companies should be engaged in funding the proposed activities directly in collaboration with the local councils.
The proposed levy is a downstream approach; it fails to tackle the main issue, which is the irresponsible disposal of gum and other litter on the streets; it accepts that gum is to be dumped on the streets and that we must clean it up.
We would propose that prevention of littering through education and penalties is a far more positive approach which will impact on the wider litter problem in addition to that of chewing gum. Prevention, after all, is better than cure.
Dr Helen Whelton and Prof Denis O’Mullane
Oral Health Services Research Centre
University Dental School and Hospital
Cork
