By: Karolina Starczak

Nov 03, 2009

Moderation is key when it comes to healthy eating. Unfortunately keys get misplaced and we end up with an empty box of cookies and a stomach ache. Lucky for us, a nutrition professor from the University of Rhode Island found the sugar-free secret to reducing hunger and burning more calories—chewing gum before and after eating.

In the study, volunteers who chewed gum for three 20-minute sessions in the morning, ate 67 calories less during lunch. It may not seem like much, but if you’re consuming a 400-calorie lunch, that’s almost 17 percent less calories. The good news doesn’t end there, when participants chewed gum before and after meals, they also burned 5 percent more energy.

So how does chomping down on gum decrease hunger and burn more energy? The simple act of chewing requires burning calories and energy to take place. Then as we chew, the nerves found in our jaw inform the brain that food, or in this case gum, is being broken apart and prepped for digestion. It is believed that the part of the brain responsible for feeling full is alerted of the chewing process and causes hunger to be suppressed. While the brain is fooled into thinking food is on the way, we can take advantage of our decreased appetite and effortlessly walk by that new bakery down the block.

If you don’t already have a sugar-free favorite, visit the American Dental Association website for a list of chewing gum products worthy of the ADA Seal of Acceptance. The Seal ensures that your chewing gum choice is safe, effective, and doesn’t contain any cavity causing sweeteners so you can skip cavities and calories.

Do you fight cravings with gum?

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