A new study by the University of Texas has found that chewing sugar-free gum during pregnancy could help reduce the rate of premature birth.
The study of over 10,000 expectant parents in Malawi, which has the highest rate of pre-term births in the world, had half of the participants chew gum for ten minutes each morning and each evening, as well as following standard advice on looking after their teeth. The other half were only given the advice on looking after their teeth.
The women who chewed gum had a pre-term birth rate of 13 per cent, while the non-chewers had a pre-term birth rate of 17 per cent. That means one pre-term birth was prevented in each group of 26 women.
Women who were given chewing gum typically saw benefits in their oral health. Those who went to their dental checks had fewer signs of gum disease – such as bleeding and receding gums – at the end of their pregnancy compared with the women given only standard toothcare advice.
It’s been widely documented that harmful bacteria can enter the bloodstream via bleeding gums in people with gum disease, which means it can potentially reach the placenta. And sugar-free chewing gum contains the artificial sweetener xylitol, which has been found to reduce harmful mouth bacteria Streptococcus mutans.
The trial would need to be repeated in high-income countries before we could conclude chewing the gum is similarly beneficial during pregnancy there, says Aagaard.
“All folks in all settings are interested in optimising both their pregnancy health and that of their children.”
The results were presented at the US Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s annual meeting.
