If you don't allow your DC to have chewing gum...why not?

[user1491572121]

I understand with young children but 9? My DD is 9 and sometimes, for a treat, I will let her have a pack of Juicy Fruit.

I know some people call it "Disgusting!"

No idea why...I personally find lollipops disgusting...all that slopping over a stick...pulling a spitty sweet in and out of mouths...but I'd never say so...because I get that it's just my weirdness.

Why don't you allow your child gum?

DD's friend is 9 too and she's not allowed gum but she is allowed really sticky toffees and other things I'd think twice about for teeth's sake.

Why?

Because it's grim

They've never asked for it, DH and I never have it ourselves, it's not banned but they've never had it AFAIK.

I have anxiety dreams about it sometimes. I dream that I'm chewing on it, and the gum just keeps getting bigger in my mouth. I try pulling it out, and it just keeps stretching out. I try breaking pieces off, but there's just more gum in my mouth, and it's never ending. It just keeps swelling up until it fills up my mouth and I can't breathe.

It reminds me of that girl in Charlie and the chocolate factory, who chews gum all day long and sticks it behind her ear. My friend tried that when we were kid, and it got stuck in her hair. I think that her mum had to cut it out.

So no, I don't chew it any more. It's interesting about chewing gum for 30 minutes after a meal to neutralise acid. I don't think that it's suitable for vegetarians though is it? Isn't it made of dolphin blubber or something?

No dolphin blubber in my chewing gum...

Upon further research, it seems that some gums use animal-sourced glycerol but most use vegetable glycerol. Most of Wrigleys gums are suitable for vegetarians/vegans.

about to get hated on but here goes...
When my daughter was a baby she'd chew gum instead of a pacifier. It kept her happy and she never got addicted to it or anything like that. Pacifiers are not the norm in Paris where she grew up and she wasn't the only one, it was sugar free (vegan!!) gum that I used to buy specially for her from a little shop and I have to say she has the straightest natural teeth i've seen in a while...

How do French babies know not to swallow it? As a mum who still cuts grapes for her three year old, this fascinates me.

I have a friend who insists her DC have it after meals because it's good for your teeth.

Personally I use it sometimes when hungover I have a bad taste in my mouth, but I chew for a few mins, until the mintiness goes and then I'm done and that seems to be the way my DC, very occasionally use it.

The main reason to ban it is because of the number of people who don't know how to dispose of it properly IMO.

I'll be giving it to my kids when they're old enough as it's the best way to avoid cavities. At 32, I only have one filling. I have chewed gum since young after everything I ate and it's saved my teeth. It doesn't have to be chewed for hours!

18 months old is the recommended age to start practising chewing gum under adult supervision lifeisazebracrossing so you might not need to wait any more.

I love chewing gum, always have.

I've got a really firm jawline and no saggy skin on my cheeks and I'm sure its coz I'm always chewing.

YABU because gum is gross.

Whether you are 9 or 99 or somewhere in between, chewing the cud on the street is spectacularly vulgar. You may call me a snob, I don't really care, I have standards and I stick to them. (The same goes for smoking in the street or eating on the hoof - antisocial behaviour shudders )

You cannot dispose of it. Full stop. It is landfill waste. It does not biodegrade. It is worse as litter but it is not environmentally responsible even if put in the bin.

Mine don't because of dental braces.

If i'm going to spend X number of hours taking them to and from the orthodontist , they aren't chewing gum !

Chewing sugar free gum is good for teeth so i would encourage it

www.dentalhealth.org/tell-me-about/topic/caring-for-teeth/sugar-free-chewing-gum

Ds (10) is allowed it.

Dd (6) isn't because she was given bubblegum once and it ended with a trip to the hairdresser.

bovine chewing like a cow

Often disposed of irresponsibly

Utterly pointless

I always have gum, will give my kids a bit in some occasions as long as it goes in the bin.