i heard it was 7 years>- but is that just a tale?
2007-08-16 06:00:47 · 24 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
You've probably heard that if you swallow your chewing gum, it will stay in your stomach for seven years. If gum stayed in your stomach, it would dissolve in the highly acidic environment (pH 1-3) long before the seven years had passed. Gum doesn't stay in your stomach, but continues on into your intestines, eventually finding its way out of your system in pretty much the same condition as when you swallowed it.
2007-08-16 06:06:41 · answer #1 · answered by Casey 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Dnbgrrly is correct. If the wad of gum is small enough to pass through the stomach valves, it will move along with the rest of your food at a normal pace. If it's too large to pass through the stomach's outlet valve, you might have a problem, unless the stomach acid can eat away at the gum to make it smaller. On the other hand, it might be impossible to swallow a gum wad big enough to get stuck in the stomach - it wouldn't go down your gullet!
2007-08-16 13:10:45 · answer #2 · answered by TitoBob 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually this is an urban legend and chewing gum will not sit in your system for any longer than any other food you digest it just doesn't break down any and comes out looking the same way it went down.
2007-08-16 13:09:29 · answer #3 · answered by Ollie's Mommy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That is an old wives tale - Gum will stay pass through your stomach and through your intestines just like any other food. You poop it out just as quick as you will anything else.
2007-08-16 13:08:11 · answer #4 · answered by Go Bears! 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That is just a myth. I watched something on television that said that gum passes through your system like other substances. Just think we eat taffy and its about the same so why would they let us eat that if it were going to be stuck there for 7 whole years.
2007-08-16 13:08:05 · answer #5 · answered by ♥♫§weetTart§amantha♫♥ 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oh no, my mum said I would die if I swallowed any chewing gum!!! Hope it's an old wifie's tale (I swallowed some when I wiz at primary school, still waiting tae be cast intae oblivion).
2007-08-16 13:10:40 · answer #6 · answered by Angela M 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Gum will pass through you just like other foods. The difference is that you usually do noto digest gum...it comes out as the same wad that went in.
2007-08-16 13:09:07 · answer #7 · answered by Mr. G 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As long as any other thing you swallow. It does not take years to get out, it is a myth, it just something else for your body to try and digest. Unless of course you swallow a huge lump and it gets stuck.
2007-08-16 13:05:34 · answer #8 · answered by dnbgrrly 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Considering the strength of digestive juices it will be broken down and passed through the gut and excreted within about 30 hours maximum
2007-08-16 13:10:06 · answer #9 · answered by McCanns are guilty 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That 7 years thing is a myth created to get kids to spit their gum out. It gets digest just like anything else we may eat.
2007-08-16 13:07:39 · answer #10 · answered by Judy 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋