Exploring the Surprising Benefits of Chewing Gum on Ocular Health

Shruti Kumari Shah, B.Optom Student

Acharya Institute of Allied Health Sciences, Bengaluru, India

Chewing gum, which is usually dismissed as a simple candy, has recently piqued the curiosity of scientists due to its health advantages, especially with regard to eye health. New studies show how it affects the production of tears, symptoms of dry eyes, and visually induced motion sickness (VIMS).⁽¹⁾ The main conclusions from three important research examining these issues are outlined in this blog.

Enhancing Tear Production

A new study looked at how chewing gum impacts tear production and blinking rate, both of which are important for controlling dry eye syndrome.⁽²⁾  Researchers assessed tear-meniscus height (TMH), depth (TMD), and area (TMA) in 30 healthy participants before and after they chewed gum for 15 and 30 minutes. The findings revealed a substantial rise in TMH, TMD, and TMA during and after chewing gum, with no significant difference between the 15- and 30-minute periods. Furthermore, the rate of blinking increased significantly when chewing gum. This is the first study to show that chewing gum may dramatically increase tear production and blink rate, implying that it could be a useful, non-drug treatment for dry eye.⁽²⁾

Chewing Gum and Dry Eye During Mask-Wearing

The COVID-19 epidemic has caused mask use to expand widely, and this has been connected to a rise in symptoms of dry eyes.⁽³⁾ Due to limited jaw mobility and decreased facial muscle activity, masks may inhibit the formation of tears. Chewing gum has been shown in the study to potentially reduce these symptoms by increasing salivary flow, which is associated with an increase in ocular lacrimation. It would seem from this that chewing gum might provide some relief for people whose dry eyes are made worse by wearing masks; this would be an easy fix for a frequent issue.

Mitigating Visually Induced Motion Sickness

The impact of chewing gum on visually induced motion sickness (VIMS), a prevalent problem during virtual reality (VR) encounters, was investigated in different research.⁽¹⁾ Comparing the motion sickness symptoms of participants in a VR simulation to a control group, those who chewed ginger or peppermint gum reported a substantial decrease in symptoms. Chewing gum decreased peak motion sickness scores, according to the study, and fewer symptoms were associated with the gum’s delicious taste. Gum is a useful tool for enhancing comfort during virtual reality activities since studies suggest that it may help reduce VIMS by offering gustatory-motor stimulation.⁽¹⁾

Conclusion

The many advantages of chewing gum for ocular health are highlighted by this research taken together. Chewing gum shows itself to be an easy and practical option with a wide range of uses, from improving tear production and blinking rate to perhaps relieving mask-related dry eye symptoms and lowering VIMS.⁽¹⁾ As studies on the topic continue, chewing gum could be a flexible, non-pharmacological treatment for a range of ocular and associated health issues.^(2,3)

References:

1. Kaufeld, M., De Coninck, K., Schmidt, J., & Hecht, H. (2022). Chewing gum reduces visually induced motion sickness. Experimental brain research, 240(2), 651-663.
2. Ozturk, H., Aytogan, H., & Ayintap, E. (2024). The influence of chewing gum activity on tear production: A prospective study of anterior segment optical coherence tomography. European Eye Research, 4(1).
3. Rastmanesh, R. (2022). How Mandibular Movement Intersects with Ocular Lacrimation: A Literature Synthesis. Ophthalmology and Vision Care, 2(1).