Study on physical and mental influences of chewing of the gum containing novel component

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K12323
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Eating habits
• Research Institution: Tokyo Medical and Dental University
• Principal Investigator: SUGIMOTO Kumiko 東京医科歯科大学, 大学院医歯学総合研究科, 非常勤講師 (10133109)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 上條 真吾 東京医科歯科大学, 大学院医歯学総合研究科, 助教 (40725222) ; 土橋 なつみ 東京医科歯科大学, 歯学部, 非常勤講師 (70648419)
• Research Collaborator: KONO Yoko ; KUBOTA Ayako
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: ガム咀嚼 / フレーバー / カプサイシン / 唾液分泌 / 自律神経活動 / 脳波 / 作業効率

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The effects of gum chewing varies with components of gum.　In this study, the effects of chewing of gum containing capsaicin, which is a novel ingredient for gum and a pungent stimulation, were investigated by measuring salivary secretion, autonomic nervous activities and electroencephalogram (EEG). Chewing of capsaicin-containing gum induced higher and more persistent increase in salivary flow compared with tasteless gum and base (sweet) gum. It caused a decrease in parasympathetic activity accompanied with an increase in sympathetic activity and an increase in ratio of beta wave component in EEG, which were also observed during chewing of other gums. In addition, chewing of capsaicin-containing gum during calculation task of Kraepelin test prevented a decrease of answer rate over time, suggesting an effectiveness for improvement of work efficiency through arousal effect.

Free Research Field

口腔保健学