You may or may not be surprised to hear that chewing gum has certain health benefits when it comes to your teeth, but you may be surprised that the benefits of chewing gum go way beyond that. Chewing gum has been found to have many additional benefits that all relate to productivity. It has even been suggested that chewing gum helps performance even more than caffeine!
Stress And Mood Benefits
Andrew Smith’s study for Cardiff University showed that chewing gum has a positive impact on your stress levels and mood. Not only did test subjects claim to have improved moods when chewing gum, but cortisol levels also supported these claims – and cortisol levels are a good, measurable indicator of stress levels.
Reduced stress and improved mood means that tasks are less formidable and you’re less likely to put them off. Beyond that, work relationships are naturally going to be improved if you’re feeling good. No one wants to be around someone in a bad mood!
Improved Attention Span
When you chew gum, blood flow increases, which means that more oxygen is being delivered throughout your body. The result? You feel more alert and are more likely to be able to stay focused on the task at hand.
Further EEG and MRI studies have shown that chewing activates several areas of the brain and that these areas are the ones that typically light up when you are completing tasks. So, if you start chewing gum before tackling a task, your brain is essentially already turned on and ready to go.
Tackling Difficult Situations
Your stress levels, mood, and ability to focus are all crucial to your ability to successfully tackle a difficult task. So already chewing gum is beneficial to productivity since it helps with all these things. Beyond these benefits, Smith’s study found that chewing gum improves reaction time and helps when you have to respond to difficult questions. These particular benefits even improve as the task becomes more difficult and the longer you chew the gum.
Combined, all of these benefits mean that tasks are easier from start to finish and that you’re more likely to end up with the best results. Not to mention, you’re more likely to enjoy working since you’ll be in a good mood!
Who Benefits From Chewing Gum
Smith’s study not only set out to demonstrate the benefits of chewing up, but it also showed who can enjoy these benefits. The good news is that he found that both regular gum chewers and those who chew gum infrequently are able to receive the full benefits of chewing gum. This is also true for people with both low and high anxiety levels. Also, it doesn’t matter if you are in a noisy or quiet environment – the benefits are still the same. And finally, you can chew any flavor of gum you like since both fruit and mint flavored gum produced the same benefits.