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Maybe you are one of those chewing gum fans. Chewing gum can accompany you whenever you are working or playing, even when you are alone. You can also use chewing gum to relieve your tension in public. Chewing gum may help some people in certain situations. However, be careful not to swallow the gum as there are a number of things that can happen.
What if I swallow gum?
Maybe you often hear that the chewing gum that is swallowed then builds up in your stomach and can't get out. Your parents or some of your closest people may often tell you this since childhood so you don't swallow gum. But, really, where does chewing gum go after it's been swallowed? Will it accumulate in the body?
When you eat, your body actually starts digesting the food through a mechanical process in your mouth, namely chewing. Then the enzymes or proteins contained in your saliva and stomach help break down the nutritional content present in these foods. Furthermore, the acid in your stomach converts food waste that cannot be absorbed by the body into mush, so that the food waste can pass through the intestine and eventually be excreted through the anus.
However, in contrast to chewing gum, your body cannot digest it. This is because chewing gum contains natural or synthetic gum (gum resin). Butyl rubber is a synthetic rubber commonly used to make chewing gum. Natural and synthetic rubber sap cannot be broken down, so it cannot be digested by your body.
When you chew gum, the enzymes in your saliva break down the carbohydrates and oils in the gum. However, the gum content in chewing gum is immune to this enzyme, so the gum cannot be broken down and digested. Even stomach acid cannot break down and digest this rubber.
So, when you swallow gum, the gum in its whole form will move through your digestive tract, through the esophagus, stomach, then into the intestines to join with feces, and finally the gum is thrown out of the body through the anus. However, the process from being swallowed chewing gum to leaving your body may take several days, it could be a day, two days, or even three days.
The good news is that the gum may leave your body after a few days. However, bad things can happen to you. In very rare cases, chewing gum when you are also constipated can clog your intestines, especially if you swallow gum too often. This can make it more difficult for you to have a bowel movement. For that, try not to swallow gum. Basically, chewing gum is designed not to be swallowed, only chewed.
What if a child swallows gum?
Just like adults, chewing gum that is swallowed by young children can leave the body. However, it's a good idea to introduce young children to chewing gum when they are old enough. You can give young children chewing gum when they understand that chewing gum should not be swallowed. Usually, young children can understand this when they turn 5 years old.
One more thing that you should also do is not to give young children chewing gum too often because chewing gum can cause more problems for young children. Chewing gum can cause young children to choke. In addition, the sugar contained in chewing gum can cause tooth decay in children. Sugar can also increase the calories consumed by children. Sugar-free gum usually contains sorbitol, which can also cause diarrhea in children.
Once a child is given gum, he will usually ask for it again and again. Therefore, it is best to limit your child's giving of chewing gum to at least one or two pieces a day. Always remind your child to throw away the gum after chewing it, not swallowing it.
