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We have been talking at length about our new CBD gum YIPEEZ and how Golf Pros all around the PGA tour are loving it. We’re all in on the power of CBD no matter the form – but there are some more surprising benefits to chewing gum! This time on PRoZE we got the buzz and science behind chewing and some of the surprising benefits of chewing gum!
Chewing is a critical part of the digestive system. When food enters your mouth and you chew it, you are also producing saliva which is packed with enzymes that help break down the food and begin the digestion process right there. Now of course, gum is designed for chewing, not swallowing and digesting.
That’s right! Believe it or not, chewing gum has been linked to lowering stress! A study done with university students found that after they chewed gum for two weeks their levels of perceived stress was lower.(1) There may be a few possible reasons for this, the big one is that the act of chewing itself has been linked with lower cortisol levels! Chewing interacts with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (say that ten times fast!)
That axis is responsible for a whole bunch of functions in your body, predominantly related to homeostasis such as the metabolic, immune, reproductive, and cardiovascular systems. This whole network is meant to allow us to adapt to our environments and optimize our survival by regulating resources. It pumps out cortisol into the bloodstream to shut down some systems and elevate others as it prepares our bodies for fight or flight mode.
Okay, so now that we know about the HPA axis, how does chewing come into it? According to a study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2), mastication (chewing) and masticatory stimulation (like chewing gum) suppresses hyperactivity in the HPA axis, keeping your cortisol down and letting your body operate calmly.
Combine that with CBD and endocannabinoid system – nice.
There has been a few studies on this one! Chewing gum during a task has been shown to improve memory, alertness, decision making, and understanding! One study in particular performed by the Human Cognitive Neuroscience Unit at the University of Northumbria in the UK found that subjects who chewed gum during a short-term test performed 24% better while those who participated in a long-term memory test showed a 36% increase! (3)
Now this was a single study and other studies have speculated that the boost perhaps only applies to the first 15-20 minutes of a task. At the moment, despite the multiple studies that have data that report potential memory boosting powers, it’s still a bit unclear. If there is a connection between chewing gum and memory, that link is not clearly understood yet. Some researchers think it has to do with increased blood flow to the head and brain while chewing. So while this benefit isn’t a for sure thing, it’s being seen enough times that we feel comfortable mentioning it!
That’s right! Just in time to keep your 2020 New Year’s Resolutions on track, a new ‘One Simple Trick’ to help: chewing gum! Chewing gum can help folks trying to lose weight stick to their diets in a number of ways! The most obvious of which is that gum is a sweet, low calorie treat giving a bit of sweetness while not absolutely destroying their diet. But wait, there’s more!
Various studies on the matter have suggested that chewing could help curb appetites preventing overeating. One particular study of note posits the possibility that chewing gum may increase your metabolic rate (4) giving a boost to your bodies calorie burning potential.
Combine the appetite curbing and metabolic boosting effects of gum with the power of CBD and weight loss using our YIPEEZ gum! Take a look at our topical, isolates, and oils to see how you can leverage CBD for your performance.
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