I was interested to read recent research indicating that chewing gum, as long as it is sugar free, leads to children having up to 60% fewer cavities! The key appears to chew gum that is flavoured with xylitol, which is a natural sweetener from fruits and has less calories than sugar and it apparently works best just as your children’s adult teeth come in at about ages 5 and 6.

Chewing gum increases saliva production which helps you neutralise acid and apparently that causes the teeth to re-mineralise - actually reversing some cavities. Another benefit of the gum that uses xylitol, because obviously gum using sugar like most do wont help, is that it inhibits the growth of bacteria. In fact, the benefits even seem to extend to reducing ear infections in children by up to 40%! I don’t think it is going to take off in schools, but a journalist writing for the New York Times wrote that the best way to tackle teeth problems is to encourage children at school to chew gum three to five times a day for 5 minutes each time.