"ChewingGum" news and stories

It's Monday morning, and if you have a lot of work to catch up on or a deadline to meet, consider popping a piece of gum.

There's a new study from Australia that found chewing gum not only raises alertness, it also reduces stress and anxiety. Study participants were subjected to a test called DISS (Defined Intensity Stressor Simulation). The gum chewers also had "significant improvement in overall performance on multi-tasking activities."

The study was done in conjunction with Wrigley, and their Wrigley Science Institute. I'm not discounting the study results, but I also think that's something to keep in mind. What do you think about this study?

Jason Kronenwald likes words that begin with the letter "b" - specifically, blondes and bubble gum. Combine your two passions, and what do you get?

Of course! Portraits of iconic blonde women made entirely out of chewed bubble gum. (Why...what were you thinking? Weirdo.) Kroenwald has minions of gum-chewers at his disposal, but says he prefers Trident when it comes to personal chewing. He claims that there are no paints or dyes used, and that "the mixing of color takes place in the mouth during chewing." Hmm...so kinda like Willy Wonka, then?

Here are a bunch, from Marilyn to Britney.

Creative or cheap? You decide.

via [epi-log]

Coca-Cola isn't the only one pursuing brand extension by capitalizing on the U.S. coffee craze. I grabbed a 17-stick pack of  Wrigley's Doublemint Kona Creme at my local convenience store the other day. The only good thing about this new coffee-flavored gum from Wrigley's is that  they omitted the Doublemint part and kept the flavor to Kona Creme.

And just what does Kona Creme taste like? Imagine a cup of light and sweet from a coffee truck, sans caffeine. As a staunch enemy of decaf, I'd much rather restrict my coffee candy intake to such high-test java candies as Pocket Coffee.

I can't possibly imagine what the product development gang at Wrigley could have been thinking, especially since most folks use gum to eliminate coffee breath as opposed to getting it. Did they  want to tap into the underserved market for brown chewing gum?