Sugar free chewing gum, help!

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claregib
claregib Posts: 20 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I eat a lot of sugar free chewing gum, about 4-5 packets a day! I read on another site that it can cause weight gain. Should I just go cold turkey and give up the gum? :blush:

Replies

  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
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    You're getting a negligible amount of calories so no, this is not the cause of weight gain. Bloating, perhaps. But not actual weight gain--only an excess of calories causes that.
  • DisneyDude85
    DisneyDude85 Posts: 428 Member
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    I would just start cutting back slowly. Some people can't do cold turkey, some can. Also, you should be tracking those calories if you aren't already :smile:
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
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    DisneyDude85 wrote: »
    I would just start cutting back slowly. Some people can't do cold turkey, some can. Also, you should be tracking those calories if you aren't already :smile:

    I agree. And I read the OP as 4-5 sticks of gum so maybe the amount wouldn't be so negligible? I don't know as I don't chew it.

    But again, in the context of your overall diet, only an excess of calories contributes to weight gain.
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
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    No, that's not going to be enough to hurt your weight loss. Log each piece chewed, but you should be fine. There are some people that find chewing gum actually helps them lose weight because when they're chewing gum, they're not snacking or over-eating. So if it helps you in that, what little calories you get from it is worth it.
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,775 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I would be more concerned with the potential damage to my teeth of chewing 4-5 packets of gum per day. But to answer your questions, there is no need to stop "eating" gum. (Are you really eating i.e. chewing, then swallowing the gum, or are you "chewing" gum?) The reason some say sugar free foods/soda/gum cause weight gain is because they claim it triggers sugar cravings. However, eating/drinking/chewing sugar free products in and of itself doesn't cause weight gain.

    Additionally, if you are constantly chewing gum, I image you are not eating food constantly which will aid in creating the calorie deficit necessary for weight loss.
  • DisneyDude85
    DisneyDude85 Posts: 428 Member
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    If they are truly going through 4-5 packs a day, it could be 300-400 calories a day. (5 cals a stick, 15 sticks in a pack).
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Cut back.....I chew gum also (acid reflux). I bring 1 - 5 stick pack to work. That's all I get, there ain't no more. All things in moderation.
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,775 Member
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    DisneyDude85 wrote: »
    If they are truly going through 4-5 packs a day, it could be 300-400 calories a day. (5 cals a stick, 15 sticks in a pack).

    True that. But that would be about 4 sticks per every waking hour, or a new stick of gum every 15 min. Pretty time comsuming I would think.
  • amudd645
    amudd645 Posts: 27 Member
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    Chewing gum can help some people fight off the need to eat, but I remember reading the aspartame in sugar free can actually make you hungrier, which would lead to eating more. I guess like everybody else says, do it all in moderation.
  • starlitwaters
    starlitwaters Posts: 18 Member
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    Depends whether you mean four sticks or four packs. Four sticks is negligible (about 20 cals, although I'd still log it). Four packs will start adding up on you.
  • liftlovelunge
    liftlovelunge Posts: 23 Member
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    If I have gum, I have a habit of chewing the entire pack. As a former smoker, I feel like it's more of an oral fixation than my actually wanting some gum. Sugar free gum makes me SUPER bloated, and for that reason I try not to keep it around. I have some very tiny (and very strong) mints that I keep in my purse. I don't seem to have an issue with over-doing it with the mints.
  • claregib
    claregib Posts: 20 Member
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    Thanks everyone. Its only the last week that Ive picked up this addiction, never used to interest my before. It states that its 5 cals for 100g so I'm not too concerned about weight gain but going to knock it on the head from tomorrow :) Thanks everyone for your response xx
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
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    Consuming a caloric surplus causes weight gin, bro, not chewing gum - right?
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    I didn't know sugar-free gum had calories.

    Live and learn! :)
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
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    Yeah it's got sorbitol in it, 2.4 kcal per gram, so less calorific than sugar.

    I just did an experiment, I weighed a stick of gum before and after chewing, it does indeed get lighter so you're getting in some of dem calories just by chewing, a question I've been asking myself for a while.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    Now I'm going to want to log gum. Dang it.

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