What is a Chewing gum made of?
What is a Chewing gum made of?
A base of synthetic rubber, wax and resin that you never swallow, carrying sweetener and flavour that you do.
Gum base is the reason the whole thing works and the reason it is a litter problem. Until the mid-twentieth century it was chicle, the latex of the sapodilla tree, tapped in Central America; makers switched to petroleum-derived polymers for cost and consistency, and modern base is a blend of several. Exact recipes are trade secrets and gum base is a permitted food additive rather than a listed ingredient, which is why the packet just says "gum base". Swallowed gum does not sit in the stomach for seven years — the base is indigestible but passes through in the normal way in a few days.
Component by component
| Part | Material | Why that material |
|---|---|---|
| gum base | synthetic elastomers — polyisobutylene, styrene-butadiene rubber, polyvinyl acetate | They are chewy at mouth temperature, insoluble in saliva and inert, so the piece lasts instead of dissolving in a minute. |
| softeners | vegetable oils, glycerol, waxes | They plasticise the elastomer so the first chew is not like biting a tyre. |
| sweetener | sugar and glucose syrup, or sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol with aspartame | Sugar alcohols are not fermented by oral bacteria, so sugar-free gum does not feed tooth decay; xylitol actively suppresses it. |
| flavour | mint oils, fruit esters, encapsulated for slow release | Flavour is soluble and leaves in the first few minutes; encapsulation is the only reason a modern gum still tastes of anything at ten. |
| coating | a hard shell of maltitol or xylitol, sometimes glazed with carnauba wax | The shell keeps the soft core from sticking to the packet and gives the initial crunch. |
Other food and drink objects
- Marshmallow Sugar syrup whipped full of air and held there by gelatin, which comes from animal collagen.
- Chocolate Ground cocoa solids and cocoa butter with sugar, plus a trace of lecithin — the fat does the rest.
- Gelatin Collagen from animal skin and bone, broken down with acid or alkali and dried. There is no plant version.
- Cheese Milk protein clotted by an enzyme, drained of whey and salted — four ingredients and a lot of time.
- Bread Flour, water, yeast and salt — plus, in most factory loaves, enzymes, emulsifiers and a mould inhibitor.
- Potato chips (crisps) Thin potato slices fried in vegetable oil, seasoned with a maltodextrin-carried flavour powder, packed in nitrogen.
- Tofu Soy milk curdled with a mineral salt and pressed — cheese-making, with soybeans instead of milk.
Common questions
- What is a Chewing gum made of?
- A base of synthetic rubber, wax and resin that you never swallow, carrying sweetener and flavour that you do.
- What is the gum base of a Chewing gum made of?
- Synthetic elastomers — polyisobutylene, styrene-butadiene rubber, polyvinyl acetate. They are chewy at mouth temperature, insoluble in saliva and inert, so the piece lasts instead of dissolving in a minute.
- What is the softeners of a Chewing gum made of?
- Vegetable oils, glycerol, waxes. They plasticise the elastomer so the first chew is not like biting a tyre.
Related pages
- Marshmallow Sugar syrup whipped full of air and held there by gelatin, which comes from animal collagen.
- Chocolate Ground cocoa solids and cocoa butter with sugar, plus a trace of lecithin — the fat does the rest.
- Gelatin Collagen from animal skin and bone, broken down with acid or alkali and dried. There is no plant version.
- Cheese Milk protein clotted by an enzyme, drained of whey and salted — four ingredients and a lot of time.
- Bread Flour, water, yeast and salt — plus, in most factory loaves, enzymes, emulsifiers and a mould inhibitor.
- Potato chips (crisps) Thin potato slices fried in vegetable oil, seasoned with a maltodextrin-carried flavour powder, packed in nitrogen.
- Tofu Soy milk curdled with a mineral salt and pressed — cheese-making, with soybeans instead of milk.
- Pencil Stationery and paper
- Tennis ball Sport and games
- Banknote Around the house
- Golf ball Sport and games
- Paper Stationery and paper
- Glass Building materials
Sources
- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place