I had this thought yesterday as I was sitting in a department meeting watching the secretary chew her gum like a cow strung out on crystal meth.
We’ve been rolling this concept around in the blog that it isn’t just food that stimulates weight gain from the secretion of insulin as a result of sugar in the blood. Taubes’ book, Good Calories, Bad Calories mentioned insulin secretion as a response to sensitory triggers prior to actual ingestion of food, essentially meaning that smelling, tasting, seeing, or even thinking about eating can cause your pancreas to jump the gun. LCC recently cited an article claiming that artificial sweeteners can have a negative effect on weight loss, and though the article didn’t specifically say there was a measured increase in insulin following the use of artificial sweeteners in the test subjects, there were mentions of links to metabolic syndrome and confusion of the system as to assessment of calorie intake.
I remember reading quite some time ago that chewing gum is actually bad for you because one of the things the body does in response to eating is to have the stomach secrete digestive acids. However, if you don’t have any actual food in your stomach for the acids to work on, guess what? It goes after your stomach lining.
Personally, I never really saw any attraction in chewing gum. It’s one of those things, like smoking, that has no actual purpose, yet someone developed the products, got their use into mainstream society, and here we are with ingrained habitual use of purposeless, and in some cases dangerous, articles. I’ve watched people who chew gum, and they tend to have this kind of blank stare thing going on, as if their mind is being anesthetized. They don’t seem to have knowledge or conscious control of what’s going on between the nose and the chin, it just happens automatically (even to the point where some of them blow bubbles and pop them without realizing it, like the secretary I mentioned earlier).
Many years back, I read a book about self-improvement, and I was able to overcome many of my own little habits that I never even recognized until they were pointed out. There’s an underlying nervousness in people who have to fidget and be otherwise occupied physically instead of just maintaining a calm demeanor, but if one can recognize and then work toward controlling those impulses, they can be eliminated from one’s behavior. Chewing gum is one indication of this nervousness, and if you’re observant, you’ll probably notice other nervous habits of chewers, like pen-cap-snapping, foot tapping, and more. In case you’re a chewer, or someone who has some other habits of nervousness, please believe I’m not trying to be judgmental here, just pointing out that these things are engaged in for a reason, and whatever that underlying reason is, you can become a more relaxed person by self-realization and self-moderation. And now, we return you to our regularly scheduled blog post, already in progress.
Anyway, I got to thinking, on top of the gastric acid production, wouldn’t the act of chewing gum also stimulate insulin secretion, and as a result, weight gain? It shouldn’t even matter whether the gum is naturally or artificially sweetened, since it would be the act of chewing that provided the impetus for the release.
I did a quick Google on it, and surprisingly found an article right off the bat that said quite the opposite of my supposition, and for quite a different reason: dangerous weight loss from chronic diarrhea resulting from the ingestion of sorbitol (a sugar alcohol, used in many chewing gums, that has a laxative effect). You have to chew a lot of gum daily for this effect to happen, and many low carbers who have eaten more than their fair share of sugar free products containing sugar alcohols can attest to the associated laxative issues.
There wasn’t one link that I could find that said anything other than weight loss associated with chewing gum, and most of those pointed to the diarrhea issue. So I guess I can’t propose to the chewers that their habit is sabotaging their weight loss plans. Darn!
Filed under: Books, External Links, Food, general health, Megamas, Mindset, News, Uncategorized
I’ve actually been wondering about this lately. I rarely chew gum, though I keep some in my truck and desk. Usually only after eating certain foods that get stuck in my teeth or cause smelly breath. Maybe one piece every couple weeks.
I read about the artificial sweetener raising insulin idea a couple of years ago. Recently started trying to cut back on them. I think there may be some credence to the idea. What I never knew till I ordered Chocoperfection bars (really good), is that most of the sweeteners are rated on the glycemic index (while having no calories, their original drawing power). The two natural sweeteners used in Chocoperfection bars supposedly rate a 0 on the glycemic index. In fact, I think they say they are the only two sweeteners to do so (not sure about that). I posted a question on a another blog whether this would still provoke an insulin response. Never got an answer.
The manufacturer,Low Carb Specialties, touts these bars as good for diabetics. Check out their website. The bars are really good. I order the dark ones from Netrition.com now since they’re cheaper. My mother orders one of each, dark and milk. I’ve also tried the Jimmy Moore branded, raspberry ones. I didn’t really care for them. Just not what I was expecting, especially since they’re more expensive, but they were for my fiancee and she likes them better than me.
Of course I’m sitting here drinking a cup of dark roast with 1/2 packet of Splenda. When I used to use the whole packet.
The laxative issue with weight loss would not be true weight loss if it affects you. It was mainly be water loss which your body will retain later.
I think the weight loss from the chewing gum’s sorbitol ingestion was considered more dangerous per the article due to the fact that is was from dehydration. Supposedly, if the chewing habit at the rate required to effect chronic diarrhea would continue unabated for some time, the continuous diuretic effect could be extremely detrimental to one’s health.
I’m reading a lot of comments from people trying to cut back on the artificials, even LCC himself, and it seems to have a positive effect on weight loss from what they say. Eons ago, I gave up sugar and most salt in an attempt to reduce my blood pressure, so I really don’t add artificial sweeteners to things like coffee or tea, but I get plenty of it in commercially produced cold beverages like Fruit Refreshers and other things you expect to be sweetened, like diet soda and chocolate. Even those things aren’t a big part of my diet, as I have one can of soda daily, and maybe one or two glasses of Fruit Refreshers. Usually, I have something sweet shortly after dinner, like a low carb candy bar, but lately I’ve been enjoying a couple squares of Lindt’s Excellence 85% Cocoa bar. At 2.5 net carbs, it’s easy to fit into induction, and what little sugar is in it doesn’t seem to be affecting my weight loss (I’ve been eating it nightly for two weeks). Although it’s really a very small portion, if you nibble at it sloooooowly, it’s surprising how satisfying and delicious it can be, and while it would be easy for me to chow down a whole bar as I would have in the old days, plugging it into my daily food log helps me realize just where that would lead (the Path to the Dark [Chocolate] Side). Ungood would that be, hrmph.
Megamas – your description of the secretary chewing gum reminded me of a poem written by a teacher:
Gum chewing student
cud chewing cow
both look alike
but different somehow.
What is the difference?
Oh, I see it now
It’s the intelligent look
on the face of the cow.
Superb. I’d love to clip this and give it to her upon the next “POP.” Unfortunately, she and I are at loggerheads on the question of whether bubble gum popping is just as rude and out of place in an office environment as belching or farting (my position). I’ve offered to belch and fart for her in response to future gum noises, but she adamantly insists they are not in the same league. Oddly enough, this popping habit she claims to have little control over occurred not once during the hour and a half department meeting held by our boss the other day despite her continuous jowl gyrations throughout same, an observation I will bring up the next time she claims not to be able to control her distracting mouth explosions.
Chewing gum has never had too many effects on me, except stress relief and whiter teeth. Might I suggest that she looked mindless because she was thinking? I chew serious gum when I start absent-mindedly brainstorming.
Truth be told, I have absolutely no problem with the chewing of the substance, whether one is in their mind at the time or out of it. It’s the popping of the bubbles that distracts me from MY brain activities and is therefore not only rude but inconsiderate as well considering the popper has repeatedly been politely asked to cease and desist. Sadly, this young lady (a) feels SHE should be the judge of which of her actions are or aren’t rude, (b) hasn’t enough respect for me as a coworker to be accommodating, and (c) doesn’t feel I present any threat to her position that would compel her to acquiesce, as when in the presence of her supervisor.
Silly when I think of it, really. I’m complaining about an occasional popping noise when I could, in a different part of the world, be hearing much louder bangs more often and dodging the projectiles that accompany them. Guess it’s not so bad here after all.