Saying hello! .. and question about chewing gum

MindOverSnack · Post by **MindOverSnack** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 7:15 pm

I just wanted to say hi! and introduce myself and share my story. I'm very excited to have found this site and this philosophy and all of you enthusiasts, it is very motivating!

I'm an European living in United States for almost a year now.
I finally won my fight against cigarettes after smoking for 14 years and gain a few(a lot) of pounds back, and the US is baaaad place to stop smoking... lol

I want to add that in my life I fought many dependencies including heavy and light drug usage, most recently cigarettes and now I'm having my last big fight.. food, and if I may say.. the most twisted one.

I have been up and down in the scale (I was very thin until I gained about 60 pounds with my only pregnancy because I was young and fool) usually no diet lasts and I can't make a huge sacrifice longer than 6 months, and it seems that as soon as I stop making that huge sacrifice everything goes back to where it was, which is very disappointing. I'm stuck at the cursed 222 pounds (I'm 1.70 meters tall...), and while I've always been to the muscular side, I feel that my stomach increased tremendously since I came to the US, the food here is vicious!!

And so I came to the brilliant conclusion that I had to fight food the same way I fought drugs and cigarettes in the past... one day at a time. The No S diet is just brilliant and it's something I know I can achieve on a daily basis.

So here is my first question to all the experts out there, is chewing gum good or bad?
It might sound like a silly question, but it's not about the calories or the sugar, it's about the chewing habit... and while it helps me A LOT not to crave for food between meals I wonder if it maintains the unhealthy habit of always wanting to chew on something!

Thank you for reading and have a good one!

Post by **reinhard** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 8:19 pm

Welcome, MindOverSnack!

I'm not a huge gum chewer myself, so I haven't done a whole lot of homework on the subject. But my limited understanding is that there isn't any evidence to suggest it's harmful (and some that it's helpful). The "chewing habit" concern makes a certain amount of intuitive sense. Your but it's probably an "advanced worry" compared with your more immediate concerns.

I found some not particularly unbiased pro-gum research cited here:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/22/ch ... index.html

Reinahrd

MindOverSnack · Post by **MindOverSnack** » Thu Jan 21, 2010 12:18 am

Thank you for your reply reinhard!

Yes... it is an advanced concern... lol... I like how you put it. I got a lot of those, and most of the times I'm missing the obvious.

The gum helps in a lot of areas, not smoking, not eating, etc... I'm sure I'll be fine chewing some gum!

Getting ready to start my log. A positive way to start the new year!

Hunter Gatherer · Post by **Hunter Gatherer** » Thu Jan 21, 2010 2:38 am

Welcome to the forum!

Hope to see you around and good luck!

staclinusa · Post by **staclinusa** » Thu Jan 21, 2010 6:08 pm

There are only 2 reasons I don't chew gum; I'm a teacher (and that's just gross), and I have TMJ so it actually hurts to chew more than a few minutes. If not for those 2 things I would chew it ALL the time because it totally helps keep hunger away. If you don't have any of those issues and it helps, go for it!

MindOverSnack · Post by **MindOverSnack** » Thu Jan 21, 2010 6:32 pm

Thank you Hunter and staclinusa for your input!

I'm only using gum right now mostly 2 hours after dinner which is the worse part of the day for snacks.. because I'm just sitting there in front of the TV or with my laptop. My hunger is also stronger at that time. Yesterday I just went to get some gum and extra water and what you know, I was just fine. Breakfast today tasted so good to eat!!

I keep thinking about the special treats I'll give myself on the weekend, it kinda makes everything special, doesn't it! I love it!

Hunter Gatherer · Post by **Hunter Gatherer** » Sat Jan 23, 2010 2:04 am

Water is a big help for me too.

I'm glad things are working well for you! I love the special feeling of S-days too.