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Chewing Gum Make Kids Smarter. Yeah, Right.

April 24th, 2009 Leave a comment Go to comments
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The LA Times reports on a new study showing that kids who chew gum perform better academically:

The study was conducted by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and was sponsored by the Wrigley Science Institute. The study included 108 students, ages 13 to 16, who were assigned to either chew sugar-free gum during math class, while doing math homework and during math tests or to refrain from gum-chewing. After 14 weeks, the students’ took a math test and their grades were assessed.

Those who chewed gum had a 3% increase in standardized math test scores and had final math grades that were significantly better than the other students. Teachers observed that those who chewed gum seemed to require fewer breaks, sustain attention longer and remain quieter.

Read the entire article…

What you need to know:

The Wrigley Science Institute is funded by the William Wrigley Jr. Company, a top player in the chewing gum industry, recently acquired by an even bigger player, Mars Incorporated. It is in these companies’ best interest to promote sales by hopping on health trends and funding studies that shine on gum in a positive effect.

Don’t let these so called “independent” studies fool you for one second. With all due respect to the scientists working at the Wrigley Science Institute, and the researchers at Baylor College, there is an inherent flaw when science is “hired” for corporate purposes.

Let’s treat gum as what it is – a sweet, refreshing treat, no less no more. That’s what Wrigley did in commercials of the past. It should stick to that line today as well.

What to do at the supermarket:

If you are buying gum at the checkout counter, you’re paying a fortune. It’s usually cheaper to buy several packages in bulk, or even order a stock of your favorite brand online.

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  • Rob

    You’re right; the ‘independent study’ is hogwash. It’s positively asking for the placebo effect as the trial group knew exactly who they were and (presumably) knew why they were being tested. There is no way a double-blind study could be done on chewing gum unless a chewing-gum placebo, that looked, tasted and felt like chewing gum but isn’t chewing gum, could be found.

  • Michaelindc

    None of the principals have made this study or even an abstract available. The item on LA Times website makes no useful claims. So the gum chewers scores went up 3%. How did the non-gum chewers do? 0%, 3%, 5%? Kind of affects the conclusion doesn’t it?

    Ditto the fact that they had higher math grades at the end of the study. DID THEY HAVE HIGHER MATH GRADES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE STUDY? No mention.

    Perhaps the fool at the Times who passed along this drivel was chewing something when she studied math a long time ago. From her inability to notice basic non-logic, it was more likely to be coca leaves than Doublemint.

    The sponsorship by Wrigley makes it suspect, but does not make it wrong. (Who else would be interested in this question?) The lack of basic science in the press release takes me beyond skepticism.

  • http://yahoo maria

    i think gum does not make kids smarter but it does help you think better!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • http://fooducate.com airika

    thanks for this infomation it really helped me for my reaseaarch on gum chewing. it really does make you think better!!!!!!!

  • Sara

    i do agree that the test they did was biased BUT it could be done if you didnt tell the kids what you were testing. you could just tell them that they are being tested and they can chew sugar-free gum in class….i think they would be ecstatic to comply

  • John

    http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/study/NCT00792116? is a link to the study. The “3%” is that the change in the gum chewers’ grades and scores on a standardized math test was 3 percentage points better than those of the non-chewers.