Why Chewing Gum is Bad for You

What is chewing gum made of?

No one quite knows. There's flavor, color and sugar, but they're everywhere you look.

So what exactly are you chewing. More importantly, why is some of it bad for you?

Carcinogenics

According to research by the Canadian government, there's a draft list of 17 substances that shouldn't be on in chewing gum. These include Vinyl acetate; according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the WHO's cancer research initiative, vinyl acetate causes tumors in rats. However, it is believed that only trace amounts of vinyl acetate entered the the gum base material.

Also Read: How to Prevent Prostate Cancer

Sugar?

Sugar? Kind of. It's actually the preservative Butylated Hydroxyanisol (BHA), which is "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen", according to a recent report on carcinogens the American government's National Toxicology Program. It gets sweeter with sugar-free gums that contains artificially sweetened aspartame and acesulfame K. The former can become toxic during storage or being heated, and cause brain damage in high doses.

Its phenylalanine content makes it dangerous for those afflicted with phenylketonuria (PKU), and it also causes, and worsens epileptic seizures, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus, attention deficit disorder (ADD), diabetes, thyroid problems, Alzheimer's disease, chronic fatigue, depression and eye conditions (macular degeneration, diabetic blindness and glaucoma)

Acesulfame K has caused cancer in animals.

Then the more authentic tasting sucralose, which is produced by chlorinating sugar, and can cause shrunken thryroid glands and kidney and liver problems at high doses to animals. Human testing revealed an increase in blood glucose levels, and regular consuming it will mess up your gastrointestinal tract, leading to cramping and bladder problems.

Laxative

The zylitol, mannitol and sorbitol are good for fighting tooth decay, but the slowly digested sugar alcohols stay in your gut longer pull water into your intestine, creating a laxative effect in doses higher than grams, causing diarrhoea, bloating and stomach pain. 

Top 5 Myths About Men's Health

Like many other things in life, even the domain of men’s health is rife with myths.

Even the most educated men can fall prey to ridiculous myths which link shoe size to penis size! Then there are myths diseases like osteoporosis affect only women.

Here’s a round of top 5 health-related myths which often plague men’s minds. And it goes without saying that we’ll rip them apart (yeah, that’s

what we always do to myths).

Myth 1: Prostate Cancer only Affects Older Men

It’s true that prostate cancer affects older men (45 and above) more and that the average age for most prostate cancer-related deaths are in the vicinity of 70 to 75 but this doesn’t mean that the young men cannot are untouched by it. It affects those who are genetically pre-disposed to it and this could occur even at a younger age.

Myth 2: Osteoporosis only Affects Women

Nothing could be farther from truth. The only reason why men are considered safe from osteoporosis, albeit temporarily and then again – provisionally, is because they have a larger and sturdier skeletal framework. Also, another important factor is that they are not physically affected by menopause. This implies that bone health depreciates at a slower pace in men, than in women. Men can also fall victims to osteoporosis especially if they don’t consumer a bone-friendly diet.

Myth 3: Breast Cancer doesn’t Affect Men

This is something very, very rare but there have been cases of breast cancer in men. An Indian study found that only 0.7% out of 1200 male cancer diagnoses were to do with breast cancer. Worse, more incidents of male breast cancer are coming to the limelight.Factors like obesity, liver disease, genetics and overall estrogen exposure can potentially lead to breast cancer in men.

(image credit: drpinna.com)

Myth 4: Alzheimers Affects only Really Old Men

Many people think that it’s only in the old age when men become forgetful and start acting strange and it’s then when the Alzheimer’s disease sets in but the fact is that these are just two of the symptoms. This incurable disease has a degenerative nature that affects even speech and motor skills. In some cases, it may manifest at a young age although such cases are rare.

Myth 5: Regular Shaving gives you Thicker Facial Hair

The information is wrong and this belief is a socially accepted myth at best. Shaving can of course give you coarser hair (but even that can be taken care of). It does not affect the hair follicles and cause them to produce thicker hair..