Chewing Gum Contributes to Microplastic Ingestion

TOPLINE:

Chewing gum released up to 637 microplastic particles per gram, with most particles released within the first 8 minutes. Both natural and synthetic gums released similar amounts.

METHODOLOGY:

• Chewing gum contains plant-based or synthetic plastic polymers, making it a potential source of microplastics; however, the quantity of microplastics that a person might ingest from gum has not been measured.
• Researchers conducted a pilot study to examine the release of microplastics from gum during chewing; 10 types of chewing gum — five brands each of natural and synthetic gum — were chewed by a single participant.
• Participants chewed the gum for a specified duration of 2-20 minutes.
• Saliva samples were collected during chewing and analyzed using Fourier-transform infrared microscopy and a smartphone-enabled method to quantify microplastics.

TAKEAWAY:

• Each gram of chewing gum could release up to 637 microplastic particles, with 94% released within the first 8 minutes of chewing.
• Synthetic and natural plant-based gums released similar amounts of microplastics (P > .8).
• Four main plastic polymers were found in saliva, with polyolefins being the most frequently detected.

IN PRACTICE:

“These findings suggest that chewing gum may lead to the direct ingestion of microplastics, potentially posing health risks,” the authors wrote.

“Our goal is not to alarm anybody,” said the project’s principal investigator in a press release. “Scientists don’t know if microplastics are unsafe to us or not. There are no human trials. But we know we are exposed to plastics in everyday life, and that’s what we wanted to examine here.”

SOURCE:

These findings by Lisa Lowe and Sanjay Mohanty, engineering professor, from the University of California, Los Angeles, were presented at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 meeting on March 25, 2025.

LIMITATIONS:

Smaller microplastics may have been missed due to limitations in the detection methods used.

DISCLOSURES:

This research was supported by the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of Hawaii Maximizing Access to Research Careers program, funded by the National Institutes of Health and the California Protection Council.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.