"plaque fighting gum" news and stories

It looks like school teachers aren’t the only ones realizing that gum can be a multi-purpose vehicle. In fairness, it has been used as a non-cigarette nicotine delivery system for several years now, but the US army is putting it to more uses.

Stay Alert is a caffeinated gum developed by Wrigley’s. The cinnamon flavored gum has 100-mg of caffeine per piece, equivalent to a 6-ounce cup of coffee. Dr. Balkin, from the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research isn’t worried about the possibility of abuse, though people have been known to abuse caffeinated products such as No-Doz in the past, because “the stuff doesn’t taste that good.” There are other brands of caffeinated gum that college students have been using to say alert for some time now. They include Jolt Gum – which has half as much caffeine as Stay Alert – and Penguin Energy Gum.

The army is also in the process of developing a plaque fighting gum for use by soldiers, who are sometimes unable to have regular opportunities to brush and floss due to the duties of combat. This seems like a product that the dental industry could really get behind, once it has completed testing.