> > > Actaully, it is. I've noticed it. After chewing my gum for some hours, when I spit it out I notice that it's significnantly smaller than when I first put it in my mouth. Unless it's some kind of illusion or I unknowingly swallowed some of the gum (which is unlikely, as I've noticed the gum getting smaller more than once), the gum has really shrunk because I ingested a significant amount of sugars or fats or whatever from it.

> Or it could be that action of chewing repeatedly merely compacts the gum more. Old gum is noticeably harder, implying denser, than gum just beginning to be chewed.
>
> The Other "Perhaps" Matthew

The best method to test this would be by Mass. If it weighs the same "chewed" as it does"pre-chewed" then you haven't extracted anything from it and therefore not extracted any nutrients. Of course, you'd need to make allowances for any saliva it's picked up etc. But mass would do it.

Chewing gum is not a food, that's my opinion. It's an oral hygeine and dental aid, the same as toothpaste and mouthwash. They're not food either.

Besides, try to live on nothing other than gum and see how long you live...

Bea"Chews Wrigleys Airwaves for preference"sty