Chewing Gum!
Chewing Gum
|
|
Chewing Gum flavors
Chewing gum comes in a variety of flavors, depending on location, and is most often chewed for the flavor. There is no standard type of gum, since it can be formed in many different shapes and sizes. Some examples include:Types of Chewing Gum
Stick gum is a thin flat slab of gumTab gum is thicker and shorter than stick gum.
Dragée gum is a pillow-shaped coated pellet.
Center-filled gum (contains a softer center).
Bubble gum
Cut & Wrap gum refers to the name of the machine which wraps this type of gum, usually in the form of a chunk, cube or cylindrical shape.Ball gum is shaped like a ball and coated, and is often found in vending machines. In the United Kingdom, these are often referred to as 'Screwballs' due to being found at the bottom of a 'Screwball' ice-cream.
Tube gum or spaghetti gum is a very soft bubble gum which can be squeezed from a tube.
Lollipop center gum is found in the center of lollipops.
Bubble gum Functional gum
Dragée gum, is a pillow-shaped coated pellet, and is usually packed in blister packs.Zoft Gum Co. specializes in the development and production of herbal chewing gum products (using gum as an effective delivery system)
Chewing Gum Composition and manufacture
Chewing gum is a combination of a water-insoluble phase, known as gum base, and a water-soluble phase of sweeteners, flavoring and sometimes food coloring.The approximate manufacturing methods are fairly constant between brands. The gum base is melted at a temperature of about 115 °C (240 °F), until it has the viscosity of thick maple syrup, and filtered through a fine mesh screen. Then it is further refined by separating dissolved particles in a centrifuge, and further filtered. Clear base, still hot and melted, is then put into mixing vats. Other ingredients that may be added include: powdered sugar, whose amount and grain size determines the brittleness of the result, corn syrup and/or glucose which serve as humectants, coat the sugar particles and stabilize their suspension, and keep the gum flexible, various softeners, food colorings, flavorings, preservatives and other additives.
The homogenized mixture is then poured onto cooling belts, and cooled with cold air. Extrusion, optionally rolling and cutting, and other mechanical shaping operations follow. The chunks of gum are then put aside to set for 24 to 48 hours.
Coated chewing gums then undergo other operations. The chunks are wrapped with optional undercoating for better binding with outer layers then immersed into liquid sugar. The pellets are then colored and coated with a suitable glazing agent, usually a wax.
Non-coated varieties are covered in sweetened marble dust to prevent the wrapper from sticking to the product.
Chewing Gum Health claims
Chewing gum stuck to wallUnusual for a confectionery, chewing gum has some health benefits; sugar-free chewing gum stimulates saliva production, and helps to neutralize the effect of acids that follow meals. Sugared gum has been shown to increase tooth decay when used regularly. Chewing gum has also been identified with improving memory according to UK psychologists. They found that people who chewed throughout tests of both long-term and short-term memory produced significantly better scores than people who did not. But gum chewing did not boost memory-linked reaction times, used as a measure of attention. Also, it is known that gum-chewers scored 25% higher than the control group on immediate word recall tests, and 36% higher on delayed word recall tests. Scientists point to three, non-mutually exclusive reasons, the simplest of which attributes the higher scores to the gum-chewers' increased heart rate (and, by extension, increased blood flow to the brain). Despite this, chewing gum is banned in many schools. The chewing process expends approximately 12 calories per hour (14 watts) and chewing gum when travelling on an aircraft can counteract the irritation caused by changes in air pressure. Gum containing the sugar alcohol xylitol can help counteract tooth decay. Minty chewing gum can help clear nasal passages.Some oral surgeons and orthodontists believe chewing gum can lead to problems with the temporomandibular joint, and recommend people not chew gum if they experience headaches, muscle fatigue, or pain in their jaw after doing so.
Chewing Gum and society
Chewing gum adheres firmly to concrete and other hard surfaces, and requires great effort to remove -- power washing is often required. It is not uncommon to see urban sidewalks and train platforms speckled with thousands of patches of dried, discarded gum. For this reason, the sale of chewing gum has been prohibited in Singapore since 1992. Recently, however, some types of chewing gum (e.g., nicotine replacement gums) have been allowed under strictly monitored distribution.An old wives' tale states that chewing gum, if swallowed, may take up to seven years to be, though relatively unchanged. In rare cases, some individuals who have been known to swallow chewing-gum regularly and who are predisposed can unfortunately aid the growth of bezoars within their stomachs or intestines.
In many American, Canadian, and British schools, chewing gum is prohibited and being caught using it may lead to disciplinary action. It is discouraged because many students do not throw the used gum away but stick it underneath their desks which results in time and resources being spent on cleaning up the used gum.
Some people find these features of chewing gum irritating:
Chewing gum with mouth open
Seeing people chewing continually without eating or swallowing. (Sometimes compared to a cow chewing its cud.)The unclear distorted speech that results when people talk with chewing gum in their mouths, including when that speech is then subjected to more distortions, e.g. from being transmitted over a telephone or radio link.
The snapping noise some gum chewers make when small air bubbles are trapped in the gum and then popped by further chewing. The 'squishing' noise from the vacuum between the gum and teeth being filled with air as the teeth open.
Smacking of the lips while chewing gum. As with other foods, this is considered annoying and rude in some cultures.
Chewing Gum in popular culture
In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and its film adaptations, there is a gum-addicted girl called Violet Beauregarde, who turned blue and swelled up into a blueberry after chewing a piece of Mr. Willy Wonka's chewing gum meal substitute. Her mother and father are very critical of her bad manners.The British singer Lonnie Donegan achieved some success with his 1959 novelty song entitledcome fully digested, and that swallowing gum could also result in the substance becoming lodged in the esophagus. Chewing gum does resist complete digestion by the body; it is generally expelled like other foods in 95% of individuals. Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavour On The Bedpost Overnight?
Michael Jordan would often chew gum during basketball games because he believed that it helped him concentrate. It is now proven that chewing gum does help people concentrate. It also helps relieve stress.
Baron Davis was always seen chewing gum during a basketball game. He prefers the Juicy Fruit brand. And of course, the chief in 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', who had not spoken throughout the film, uttered the immortal words 'Juicy Fruit' when offered a stick by Randall P McMurphy whilst they were waiting for their punishment after a midnight ward party.
Chewing gum is popular with American football coaches; the stereotypical image is of the ruminating coach standing at the sidelines with his arms crossed, motionless except for the regular rhythm of the jaw as he chews. Famous gum-chewing coaches include Bill Cowher and Mike Ditka, though there are many others.
In the episode 22 Short Films About Springfield of The Simpsons, Lisa Simpson's hair becomes covered in gum.
In the musical Chicago, one of the killers states the reason she killed her lover was because he popped his gum.
"Chewing Gum" is the name of a song by Chicago band, Smashing Pumpkins. It was a demo of the Adore recordings.
Dave Grohl, founder and lead singer of the Foo Fighters, chews gum while performing because he feels it keeps his mouth moist and his vocal chords fresh.
Chewing Gum and military
The U.S. Armed Forces have regularly supplied soldiers with chewing gum since World War I because it helped both to improve the soldiers' concentration and to relieve stress. Recent studies show chewing gum can also improve one's mood. As of 2005, the US military is sponsoring development of a chewing gum formulation with an antibacterial agent, which should be able to replace conventional oral hygiene methods in the battlefield.Recently the U.S. Armed Forces have been providing soldiers with caffeinated gum to keep soldiers alert for extended periods of time without experiencing fatigue or drowsiness. Each stick of gum has app. 100 mg of caffeine in it, which is about the same amount as in an average cup of coffee.
Chewing Gum Cleaning stuck gum
If gum is stuck in the hair, it can be (at least partially) removed with Peanut Butter, also gum can be dissolved with various starches. An alternative method is to place ice into a bag and hold it on the affected area; the gum then can be peeled off, or pour vegetable oil and the gum slides right off.Gum on clothing can be put in the freezer and then scraped off. Remainders can be covered with a paper bag and ironed over.
Purified gasoline (not the kind used in automobiles, which contains additives) and ethanol dissolve gum, as probably do a lot of other solvents. When cleaning synthetic fabrics, one should test the solvent on an invisible part of the cloth to make sure the solvent doesn't dissolve, bleach, or otherwise destroy the fabric.
