A 2025 review analyzing three decades of brain-imaging studies found that chewing gum alters activity in brain regions tied to movement, attention and stress regulation, providing scientific validation for long-held beliefs about gum’s calming and focusing effects. However, benefits are limited to specific situations and are often short-lived.
Brain Activity and Chewing
Researchers at the University of Szczecin in Poland used MRI, EEG and near-infrared spectroscopy to examine brain changes during gum chewing. The findings showed that chewing activated not only motor and sensory networks involved in chewing, but also higher-order regions linked to attention, alertness and emotional control. EEG studies found brief shifts in brain-wave patterns associated with heightened alertness and “relaxed concentration.”
“If you’re doing a fairly boring task for a long time, chewing seems to be able to help with concentration,” according to Crystal Haskell-Ramsay, a professor of biological psychology at Northumbria University.
Stress Reduction in Specific Contexts
The review supports earlier findings that gum chewing can ease stress, but only in certain situations. In laboratory experiments, people who chewed gum during mildly stressful tasks such as public speaking or mental math often reported lower anxiety levels than those who didn’t. However, chewing gum did not consistently reduce anxiety in high-stress medical situations, such as immediately before surgery, and offered no clear benefit when participants faced unsolvable problems designed to induce frustration.
Across multiple studies, people who chewed gum did not remember lists of words or stories better than those who didn’t, and any boost in attention faded soon after chewing stopped. Gum may simply feed the desire to fidget.
Long-Term Limitations
Researchers noted: “Although these effects are often short-lived, the range of outcomes underscores chewing gum’s capacity to modulate brain function beyond simple oral motor control. However, at this time, the neural changes associated with gum chewing cannot be directly linked to the positive behavioral and functional outcomes observed in studies.” Future research should address longer-term impacts, isolate flavor or stress variables, and explore potential therapeutic applications. Although sugar-free gum may help reduce cavities, dentists warn that acids, sweeteners and excessive chewing may harm teeth or trigger other side effects.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.foxnews.com/health/new-study-reveals-how-chewing-gum-affects-brain-function-mental-activity