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/
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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.

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u/reignfyre Mar 03 '25

I'm wondering if just chewing on something unusual/novel is what led to the response in the brain. I would assume most people in the study have chewed gum but not "wood." Why not choose a commonly chewed on hard item?

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u/corysama Mar 04 '25

I’ve heard of this before. Long ago. Some study that concluded people who eat exclusively soft foods that don’t require chewing have a cognitive decline.

Also, it’s pretty well established that chewing on tough food is part of jaw development in that the fact that most food we eat today is so soft is a major contributor to wide spread crooked teeth needing braces.