Chewing gum may adversely affect the digestive system

If you love chewing gum, we’ve got some bad news for you. Chronic exposure to a common food additive found in everything from chewing gum to bread, can decrease the ability of small intestine cells to absorb nutrients, warns a study.

Ingestion of the compound, known as titanium dioxide, is nearly unavoidable. It can enter the digestive system through toothpastes, as titanium dioxide is used to create abrasion needed for cleaning. The oxide is also used in some chocolates to give it a smooth texture.

“Titanium oxide is a common food additive, and people have been eating it for a long time. Don’t worry, it won’t kill you. However, we were interested in some of the subtle effects, and we think people should know about them,” said one of the authors of the study, Gretchen Mahler, Assistant Professor at Binghamton University, State University of New York.

For the study, the researchers exposed a small intestinal cell culture model to the physiological equivalent of a meal's worth of titanium oxide nanoparticles, 30 nanometers across over four hours (acute exposure), for three meal's worth over five days. Acute exposures did not have much effect, but chronic exposure diminished the absorptive projections on the surface of intestinal cells called microvill.

With fewer microvilli, the intestinal barrier was weakened, metabolism slowed and some nutrients -iron, zinc, and fatty acids, specifically were more difficult to absorb.

Enzyme functions were negatively affected, while inflammation signals increased, the study said. “You should avoid processed foods, and especially candy. Mahler advises.

PHOTO: ISTOCK