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Study shows chewing on wood might be better for your brain than chewing gum

Acting like a beaver might boost your brain’s memory functions.

Woman chewing on pencil

Research is showing that chewing on your wooden pencil could help your memory when studying.

Photo credit: Canva
Erik Barnes
By Erik BarnesMar 06, 2025
Erik Barnes
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If you’re looking to improve your brain’s health, Korean university research is showing after dinner you should pass on chewing gum and start gnawing on your toothpick. Researchers at Kyungpook National University have found in a published study that the act of chewing increases blood flow and influences brain activity, along with finding that chewing wood could specifically improve your memory.

Previous studies concluded that chewing helped the brain given that it increases blood flow, allowing the brain to get more oxygen and nutrients quicker to help it function. However, the brain over time suffers through oxidative stress from reactive oxygen species, harmful molecules that damage brain cells. One way the brain protects itself from this stress is releasing antioxidants, which includes glutathione. Glutathione neutralizes these reactive oxygen species.

close up of a mouth chewing gumChewing helps blood flow to the brain.Photo credit: Canva

The purpose of the research was to see if there was any difference in glutathione release levels during chewing and, if so, if there was any difference in what was being chewed. After various tests of cognitive function and glutathione measurement in 52 university students, half of which chewed gum for five minute spans and half of which chewed popsicle sticks for the same amount of time, the results were astonishing.

- YouTubeyoutu.be

When it came to gum chewers, there didn’t seem to be any changes in glutathione levels and memory performance. However, those who chomped on popsicle sticks saw an increase in brain antioxidant levels, especially glutathione, and got higher scores on immediate memory and story memory tests.

While that’s some promising evidence, that doesn’t mean you should break out a 2x4 to nibble on for your next study session. Further research is needed since the testing group was limited to healthy 20-somethings and not a wide range of ages and certain health conditions. There would also need to be monitoring and testing of other sections of the brain, and testing with longer and shorter periods of chewing to confirm these findings.

But what are some proven ways to improve your memory while further tests on wood-chewing are done? Well, according to the Mayo Clinic and Harvard, the typical solutions are the standards: healthy diet, regular exercise, and quality sleep each night. Foods that happen to be good for the heart such as oily fish, leafy green vegetables, and nuts happen to be good for the memory, given that they promote more blood flow throughout the body including the brain. Same with cardiovascular exercise.

However, other methods to help keep your brain’s memory exercised include playing board games, doing puzzles, and playing word games, too. Go out of your way to play with or against other people, as being socially active further helps a person’s memory. There are also benefits to the memory if a person manages their stress levels and participates in regular meditation.

While chewing gum doesn’t help improve your memory, there can be some other benefits. Chewing sugar-free gum is recommended by some dentists to strengthen your jaw muscles and teeth, along with cleaning your mouth. However, chewing gum as a TikTok fitness trend to get a squarer jawline has been frequently debunked, so there is no benefit to chewing extra-hard gum. In fact, you could injure your jaw and your teeth if you’re not careful.



@dentite

#greenscreen Gum that prevents cavities 🦷



Just some bits of information for you all to remember and chew on.

healthteethbrainmemorycognitive sciencescientific study

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