New research finds chewing gum may help reduce stress

[Guest guest]

New research finds chewing gum may help reduce stress

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-08/epr-nrf082908.php

Study to be presented at the 2008 10th International Congress of

Behavioral Medicine

WHAT: " An investigation into the effects of gum chewing on mood and

cortisol levels during psychological stress, " to be presented at the

2008 10th International Congress of Behavioral Medicine, found that

chewing gum helped relieve anxiety, improve alertness and reduce

stress among individuals in a laboratory setting.* The study examined

whether chewing gum is capable of reducing induced anxiety and/or

acute psychological stress while participants performed a battery

of 'multi-tasking' activities. The use of chewing gum was associated

with higher alertness, reduced anxiety and stress, and improvement in

overall performance on multi-tasking activities.

WHO: Scholey, Ph.D., professor of Behavioral and Brain

Sciences, Swinburne University in Melbourne, Australia led the

research study and can discuss the effect of chewing gum on stress

relief and focus and concentration.

Gilbert Leveille, Ph.D., executive director, Wrigley Science

Institute, will also be available to discuss research on the benefits

of chewing gum related to stress relief and alertness and

concentration in addition to other areas including weight management

and oral health.

WHEN: Study to be presented orally on Saturday, August 30 at Rissho

University in Tokyo, Japan at the 10th International Congress of

Behavioral Medicine.

STUDY BACKGROUND:

In the 40-person study of gum chewers averaging an age of 22 years

old, performed on the Defined Intensity Stressor Simulation (DISS), a

multi-tasking platform which reliably induces stress and also

includes performance measures, while chewing and not chewing gum.

Anxiety, alertness and stress levels were measured before and after

participants completed the DISS.

Relieved Anxiety: When chewing gum, participants reported lower

levels of anxiety.

Gum chewers showed a reduction in anxiety as compared to non-gum

chewers by nearly 17 percent during mild stress and nearly 10 percent

in moderate stress.

Increased Alertness: Participants experienced greater levels of

alertness when they chewed gum.

Gum chewers showed improvement in alertness over non-gum chewers by

nearly 19 percent during mild stress and 8 percent in moderate

stress.

Reduced Stress: Stress levels were lower in participants who chewed

gum.

Levels of salivary cortisol (a physiological stress marker) in gum

chewers were lower than those of non-gum chewers by 16 percent during

mild stress and nearly 12 percent in moderate stress.

Improved Performance: Chewing gum resulted in a significant

improvement in overall performance on multi-tasking activities. Both

gum-chewers and non-chewers showed improvement from their baseline

scores; however, chewing gum improved mean performance scores over

non-gum chewers by 67 percent during moderate stress and 109 percent

in mild stress.

###

WRIGLEY SCIENCE INSTITUTE:

Wrigley is committed to advancing and sharing scientific research

that explores the benefits of chewing gum. The Chicago-based Wrigley

Science Institute works with independent researchers at leading

institutions to learn more about the potential health and wellness

benefits of chewing gum. The Wrigley Science Institute's current work

is focused on four key scientific areas: how gum can help reduce

situational stress; help manage weight; help increase focus,

alertness and concentration; and improve oral health.

*Scholey, . An investigation into the effects of gum chewing on

mood and cortisol levels during psychological stress. 10th

International Congress of Behavioral Medicine. Tokyo, Japan. August

2008.

[Guest guest]

I never developed the muscle tone in my jaw to chew gum. Makes me tired just

thinking about it.

And I'd much rather step on someone's discarded cigarette butt than

discarded gum.

O