While watching your favorite sports stars and professional coaches on TV, have you ever wondered why they constantly munch on chewing gum? Are they doing this as part of their act to look cool, accentuating the jawline and projecting dominance. Or is there a deeper meaning to this sometimes irritating behavior?
Chewing gum is thought to boost your brain’s activity with increased blood flow, resulting in improved alertness and productivity. Chewing gum is also thought to prevent a dry mouth, whilst also calming game day nerves, anxiety and fear, giving you an edge over the competition.
This post will do more than answer this simple question of why coaches and athletes chew gum. It will explore the research behind it, presenting it in an interesting way and highlight 4 reasons why this behavior has been adopted among the sports community.
1. Chewing Gum Is Thought to Boost Brain Activity
The first time I heard this I thought it was a farce. But the more I dived into the research I realized there might be some truth to it.
The movement of chewing has been thought to increase brain activity as the nerves send continuous, repetitive messages to the brain. This is thought to improve heart rate and blood pressure, and even cause a calming, stress-reducing psychological effect which we will explore later in this post. (source)
The act of chewing gum engages the trigeminal nerve that is essentially responsible for moving the jaw muscles. (source) Chewing also increases the level of activity in the front part of the brain called the frontal lobe. This is thought to make chewers more alert and therefore, boosts reaction time giving players a competitive edge. (source)
For coaches, chewing gum can help with reacting to changes within the games, making effective substitutions relative to the needs of the situation at any given time and running specific plays when the games is in the balance.
I know it sounds wild, but chewing gum “enhanced productivity and reduced cognitive errors at work, as well as heightened cortisol in the morning”. (source) So does this mean that chewing gum can help players and coaches think clearly, making fewer errors during stressful situations? It seems so.
Does the alertness effects continue even after you’ve thrown your gum away?
It seems not. According to Phycology Today “once you spit out the gum, the benefits go with it; there was no persistent carryover benefit on alertness.”
2. Chewing Gum Prevents Coaches and Players from Getting a Dry Mouth
Have you ever coached a baseball team in the middle of summer when it’s hot and humid, deep in the 7th innings? Directing athletes and communicating with your coaches in these tense environments can be exhausting, tiring work, often causing a cracked, dry mouth.
But chewing gum, particularly the sugar-free variety, as recommended by The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research will help keep your mouth healthy.
Chewing gum stimulates saliva flow which helps remove the bits of food lodged around your mouth and teeth, also moistening your mouth. It may even help prevent cavities in particular gums containing xylitol like Trident, Icebreakers, Stride and Orbit gum.
Finally, there is a simple solution to avoiding a dry mouth when standing in the outfield without access to water!
3. Chewing Gum Helps lower Game Day Nerves and Reduces Fear
Who doesn’t get a little nervous or at least feel the “positive energy” on game day?
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to quickly and safely relieve these feelings and still maintain peak performance?
Well, according to the professionals, chewing gum can decrease stress levels and is linked with “significantly better alertness and reduced state anxiety, than not chewing gum at all”. (source)
The reason behind this is not fully understood, but it has been suggested that the increased blood flow to the brain (along with all those happy oxygen molecules) caused by the chewing action could be the answer. (source)
So if you’re a coach or athlete who is a nervous wreck, chewing on a piece of gum can not only calm your nerves and decrease stress and anxiety but it can also improve concentration levels.
What’s cool is that one study concluded that chewing gum has been seen to enhance performance where people need to concentrate for a sustained period of time. (source) Have you noticed coaches chewing more gum during overtime? You’ve probably never looked (and neither have I).
Some players and coaches strum their fingers, chew on their mouth-guards or pace around the halls, but the other group chews gum – all looking for the same outlet.
If you are thinking of taking up this convenient habit to decrease stress, ask yourself whether the stress has been bugging you for a long time (ie, chronic) or is it something new (ie Acute). Apparently, the “actuity” of the stress has an impact on whether chewing gum will actually help or not.
One study suggested that when chewing gum, positive relaxing effects were only seen for the first two weeks but when measured at 4 weeks, there were no significant differences between both groups. But I wonder what would have happened if the study continued for a longer, potentially a few months? It’s an interesting thought.
“chewing gum…was associated with significantly better alertness and reduced state anxiety, stress and salivary cortisol.”
Jounal of Physiology & Behavior
4. Chewing Gum Before and During a Game Is Habit
Back in the good ol’ days coaches and players could have been seen chewing tobacco or even sucking in the nicotine from a cigarette to keep them calm, but those days are pretty much non-existent, at least professionally anyway.
The act of chewing something seems to relieve stress, decreasing anxiety, giving players and coaches the ability to focus without their nerves taking over.
If it’s not gum it’s generally something else like:
- Sunflower seeds
- Pistachio nuts
- Beef jerky
- Candy
- Energy bars
I’m sure most players and coaches have no idea about the research behind chewing gum and it’s purely become a superstitious habit. But never the less, particular athletes are creatures of habit and just don’t feel at ease without something to chew on.
“Put it all together — every helmet facing to the right, every cleat, mouthpiece and pack of gum resting in the exact same place, 87 different times — and it becomes clear: precision is everything”.
ESPN
Chewing Gum Specific Questions:
Does the Type of Chewing Gum Make a Difference?
Chewing flavored gum, as opposed to standard gum base, could result in “high arousal state in brain function”. (source)
This is because as you chew flavored gum you start to smell and inhale the flavors, activating different sensors and various parts of the brain. This increases brain activity and potentially performance or mood.
While at the store choosing your flavored gum before a big game consider one that’s sugar-free. I’m sure it’s no surprise that the research suggests “sugar-free chewing gum has a caries-reducing effect” (source) or reduces dental cavities. But in all seriousness, it could save you a few dollars at the dentist!
Do I Need to Chew for a Set Number of Times Before It’s Effective?
The information I have found here is wildly different and I wish I had a straight answer.
Some say that chewing harder chewing gum results in better concentration, faster encoding of new information and less drowsiness in comparison to soft gum, but other studies think it doesn’t make a difference.
The jury is still out here. I suggest giving different chewing gums a try during times of stress and see how you feel within yourself because, in the end, that’s what matters.
Fun fact:
Chewing gum inside the classroom is also become more widely accepted for helping over-stimulated and naturally “hyped” kids sit and focus. (source)
Keep Reading:
- What is the Best Sports Video Editing Software & Apps?
- Why Do Coaches Yell? Does It Really Help Motivate Athletes?
- Why Is Youth Sports Important? 21 Reasons Kids Should Play
Summary: 4 Reasons Why Sports Coaches and Athletes Chew Gum
From helping players and coaches to remain relaxed, calm and alert to preventing a dry mouth, chewing gum is a huge part of sports and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere fast.
Do you use chewing gum to help you relax before a big moment?
Cheers,
Emma
