r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Mar 03 '25

Neuroscience Chewing different materials affects the brain and a new study found that chewing on wood (wooden tongue depressors), compared to chewing gum, led to a significant increase in a natural brain antioxidant called glutathione, and better performance on memory tasks.

https://www.psypost.org/chewing-wood-may-boost-memory-and-brain-antioxidants-study-finds/
15.2k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

567 comments sorted by

View all comments

2.5k

u/Tanukifan Mar 03 '25

Their conclusion was:

Chewing moderately hard material elevates brain antioxidant levels such as GSH, potentially influencing cognitive function.

So its not specifically wood that gives the effect, even if they tested it with wood.

1.2k

u/eliminating_coasts Mar 03 '25

If only they'd tested carrots, we could have much less strange immediate recommendations.

309

u/roamingandy Mar 03 '25

Not sure they'd work as you're eating carrots rather than chewing on them for a prolonged time like wood or gum.

273

u/eliminating_coasts Mar 03 '25

I think if chewing is the thing that causes the effect, there's not much harm in eating a vast quantity of uncooked and peeled but unchopped carrots - they're not particularly energy dense, high in fibre and vitamins etc. so you probably could just keep munching carrots like a horse for hours without having a significant negative effect.

246

u/TheArmoredKitten Mar 03 '25

Total anecdote, but my dog's favorite treat is a big ol carrot right out of the dirt. I'll go to the farmer's market and buy a couple of em, because even one keeps her busy for at least an hour. Any time in the summer when she starts being a pain in the ass I just toss a cold carrot at her and she just hangs out in a sunny spot and obliterates it.

183

u/eliminating_coasts Mar 03 '25

And dogs are enthusiasts at chewing things, so I take that as a serious endorsement.

85

u/FlashbackJon Mar 03 '25

If you can get Japanese carrots (I'm sure there's a specific name, but I just mean "the carrots we saw at every store when we lived in Japan"), they're usually extra girthy with a much woodier interior, and dogs still go fuckin' nuts for them.

E: The cultivar is shin kuroda.

10

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '25

A frozen bone of the ananas too

2

u/jazir5 Mar 04 '25

Oh that's a solid idea. Amazing really.