Gum chewing is a double-edged sword. Amongst the pros are the stimulation of brain activity and the positive dental health benefits when you chew sugarless gum with xylitol. Adolescents and teenagers are generally attracted to gum chewing at a higher rate than the average adult. Unfortunately, there are cons to this habit (especially if the gum being chewed is chock full of sugar). Recent research has uncovered a new downfall to constant gum indulgences in teenagers: exacerbation of migraine headaches. Houston, TX family dentist Dr. Deborah Gennerro will bear this in mind the next time she hears a young patient complain of unexplained headaches.
When the Chewing Stops, So Do the Headaches
Dr. Nathan Watemberg of Meir Medical Center (affiliated with Tel Aviv University) took a recent look at gum-chewing teenagers as well as adolescents, and made a connection between the gum habit and persistent headaches. Published in Pediatric Neurology these research results will hopefully aid in identifying and treating the growing number of migraine and tension headaches seen in young people. Once the study volunteers refrained from their regular gum chewing habits, “Out of our 30 patients, 26 reported significant improvement, and 19 had complete headache resolution,” said Dr. Watemberg. “Twenty of the improved patients later agreed to go back to chewing gum, and all of them reported an immediate relapse of symptoms.”
Irritation of TMJs
Headaches are not unheard of in early childhood. Frequency increases in preteen years, particularly among girls. Suspected headache causes have long been thought to be exhaustion, reaction to heat, overexposure to television and video games, sunlight exposure, hunger, hormones, and smoking. However, the relationship between headaches and chewing gum was largely ignored until recently. Dr. Watemberg noticed that many of his patients who complained of headaches were, in fact, daily gum chewers. Teenage girls tended to be the most voracious gum lovers. Some of the patients studied chewed gum as many as six hours each day. Prior studies looked at gum chewing in relation. Aspartame as being the cause of headaches. Dr. Watemberg believes the issue is much more likely to be irritation of the TMJs.
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