SEVEN YEAR STICK? We all know the sticky substance is difficult to digest… but does it really cling on to your internal organs? CHEWING gum is not designed to be eaten, but could it REALLY stay in your body for seven years? A stomach doctor has FINALLY revealed what actually happens if you accidentally swallow gum.
We’ve always been told NOT to swallow gum… but just how bad is it for your body? Speaking to BuzzFeed, gastroenterologist Dr Lisa Ganjhu, of the NYU Langone Medical Centre in New York, explained exactly what goes on in your digestive system. Apparently, rubbery gum passes through your body just like any other type of food, but it IS harder to digest. Dr Ganjhu said: “Your GI tract is very strong, if it can digest a tough steak it can digest gum.”
Does gum stick to your insides, like it would to a wall? We all have the gastric movements, acids and enzymes available to break down gum – but the base does not get dissolved completely, because of its chemical properties. It also doesn’t get dissolved into the small intestine, unlike other foods. However, the good news is you WILL digest the gum eventually.
Don’t fear, the gum WILL still pass through your body Busting the myth that gum would stick to your insides in the same way it would cling to the bottom of a desk, Dr Ganjhu told BuzzFeed the sticky substance will eventually pass out of the body. The doctor added: “Once it’s in, it’ll go out like everything else. “There is no specific time frame because everyone’s digestive system motility is different.”
Happy chewing! Meanwhile David Milov of the Nemours Children’s Clinic in Orlando, Florida, previously told the Scientific American that colonoscopies never normally unearth gum which is more than a week old. So gum’s similar to any other difficult-to-digest substance, and should eventually pass through your body intact.