What Makes Bubblegum Chewy?
The bane of teachers everywhere, modern chewing gum has been popular since the mid-1800s. Depending on the manufacturer, gum gets its chewy quality from either a natural or synthetic latex.
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History
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People have been chewing some form of gum since prehistoric times. For example, as reported by the BBC in 2007, evidence that Neolithic people chewed birch bark tar was discovered in Finland by British archaeology student Sarah Pickin. The 5,000-year-old lump of tar contained what Professor Trevor Brown described as, "well-defined tooth imprints." Native Americans chewed spruce resin to quench their thirst and early pioneers picked up the habit. Early commercial gum brands replaced the resin with paraffin and in the 1860s the paraffin was replaced by chicle.
Chicle
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According to Mexicolore, chicle was introduced to the United States from Mexico by infamous General Santa Anna. It had been used by indigenous people such as the Aztecs and Maya for centuries. Made from the latex of the sapodilla tree, chicle contains a material called gutta, which gives it elastic qualities. It is this elasticity that makes gum so chewy.
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Gum Today
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Although a few small companies manufacture gum made from chicle, today's major manufacturers have largely replaced chicle with gum base made from artificial rubber, plastic, wax and emulsifiers. Gum base has the same elastic quality as chicle but is less expensive to produce.
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References
- Photo Credit bubblegum image by Mélissa Bradette from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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Glee Guy
Oct 12, 2010
Neat post! Just wanted to add that Glee Gum is made with chicle. It's the only chewing gum in North America that contains this sustainably harvested tree sap. :) Glee Guy (humble mascot of Glee Gum)
