Researchers at UCLA found that chewing gum – even gum labeled "natural" – can release hundreds to thousands of microplastics per piece into saliva and potentially be ingested.

The release says large pieces of gum release up to 3,000 pieces of.microplastic into saliva — and estimates that if someone chews up to 180 sticks of gum a year, they could consume 30,000 pieces ...

Chewing gum releases hundreds to thousands of microplastics into your mouth, a new study suggests. Chewing gum's base ingredient is synthetic rubber, which is a type of plastic. A stick of gum is ...

The study estimated that an average person chewing 160 to 180 sticks of gum per year could ingest approximately 30,000 microplastics, significantly increasing the overall annual intake of ...

Most of us use products that expose us to microplastics each and every day. In fact, it’s thought that our food, our drinks, and our plastic packaging can cause us to ingest tens of thousands of ...

The plastic shed by chewing gum was three times wider than a red blood cell. SmirkDingo / Alamy Stock Photo. This is important because the microplastics that are known to be capable of harming ...

Extrapolating this further, a 2–6 gram piece of gum may release as many as 3,000 microplastics. Multiply that by the average amount of gum chewed annually, that you could be looking at around ...

Benefits of Chewing Gum. Despite the concerns and downsides, gum isn’t all bad. In fact, dentists say that when used correctly, it can help your oral health. “Chewing gum after meals ...

But chewing gum with sugar once in a while doesn’t pose major health risks, especially if you have good oral hygiene. Sugar-free gum has less than 0.5 grams of sugars per serving and uses ...

Chewing gum may also confer cognitive benefits, according to a handful of psychology and scientific studies. In certain settings, it seems to boost test performance, working memory, and alertness.

Gum chewing may exacerbate jaw problems among people who are prone to issues or injuries with the temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, which connects the jawbone to the skull, Dr. Arsenault said.