I recently purchased a package of authentic mastic chewing gum online after reading a tweet that it could have some mild medicinal benefits and help sculpt my jawline. Sounded like a win-win. I’d have a manly jawline after a few weeks, and get some antioxidants and boost my gut health at the same time.
Yes, I often take dubious health advice from Twitter.
My first bite into the natural chewing gum was quite the experience. It was brittle like hard candy, but quickly turned into something like chewing gum, and I actually enjoyed the earthy, herbal flavor despite the many complaints you might have read on Amazon.
Who knew I was a chewing gum kind of guy all along?
Then I started chewing it regularly for a few days, and realized the main issue for me: chewing gum is lame ass habit to have. What am I, a horse? A 15-year old girl? Adults don’t need to chew gum unless you’re trying to convince a cop you’re not driving drunk.
I quickly concluded that whatever health benefits you expect to gain from mastic chewing gum you can get by taking it as a pill, oil, or extract. “Mastic gum” isn’t always sold as an actual chewing gum. It’s a lot cheaper and a lot less annoying.
Not only that, your expectations of having a strong jawline after chewing are complete bullshit. Absolutely made up. It literally, scientifically cannot happen. Every single other website out there claiming that they “got results” is full of absolute shit.
So even though you’ll read a ton of other articles out there claiming that one of the main benefits of chewing mastic gum is a healthy jaw, please consider they are full of shit.
Mastic Gum And The Manosphere
If you look into anything related to chewing mastic gum for a more sculpted jawline, you’re sure to run into two types of articles:
- Promotional material for sellers of mastic gum
- “How to be a man” articles
The second is a bit funny for me because as a 40-year old man, I remember the days of my youth where I was reading these types of articles seriously.
could I really put on some pheromones and be instantly attractive to women?
how do I make myself appear taller to women?
(For any young men reading this, there are only two bits of advice I ever read that actually helped me pick up women, and it was to wear nice shoes, and to ask a woman what her dad was like. Don’t ask my why they work, but they do. Doesn’t matter. Not the point of this article.)
The manosphere is full of both good and bad advice about how to be a good man, how to be more attractive, and that sort of thing. Some advice is good, like the self improvement stuff. Some advice is just easy to dole out because you can’t prove it wrong. Mastic gum chewing falls into the latter category.
The big thing with mastic gum and the internet manosphere is that chewing mastic gum is supposed to give you a stronger jawline, therefore appear more attractive to women. Just look up some of the pictures under “does mastic gum work” and it’s all teenage boys on TikTok clenching their jaws like they have some chew in the side of their cheek.
Does Mastic Gum Sculpt Your Jawline?
No, mastic gum doesn’t sculpt your jawline or give you any sort of facial definition, even with long term chewing. While chewing mastic gum over a longer period of time can give you stronger chewing muscles, these muscles are so small and hidden under layers of cheek fat that even the strongest of jaws are not going to be noticeable.
The shape of your jaw is defined mostly by your actual bone structure, not the muscles surrounding the bone. Years of chewing won’t make a difference. It’s not a bicep.
You know what it reminds me of is all those ads about “how to lose belly fat”. There’s no way to lose belly fat. You lose general fat, and your belly shrinks as a result. There is no secret diet or ingredient to help you lose belly fat. Fat is fat. It’s all an advertising scam.
What About The Before And After Jaw Pictures?
Go ahead and look up mastic gum before and after jaw pictures in Google it’ll be super obvious that in every photo, there’s a lot more going on than just chewing gum.
Many of the photos are of young men who are doing some sort of health transformation, and chewing mastic gum is part of a larger regimine.
In photo 1, you’ll see a skinny-fat kid with scruffy hair in bad lighting with a relaxed face. In photo 2, you’ll see a more muscular kid with a fresh haircut, good lighting, clenching his jaw to flex his new “jaw muscles”.
It’s pretty obvious that the before and after pictures are goosed up, even if it’s unintentional.
What About The Health Benefits Of Mastic Gum?
That’s not to say that there aren’t any health benefits to mastic gum. Actually, it’s been formally designated as an herbal medicine for digestive issues. Its anti-oxidant and anti-bacterial properties may have other therapeutic effects as well. In terms of health benefits, Chios mastiha (the official name of the resin used for authentic mastic gum) is legit.
Buy why chew it when you get buy it as a pill, powder, or extract? (affiliate links)
You’ll stillget all of the major health benefits of the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of Chios mastiha. Much faster as well.
You could make the case that you would miss out on the benefits associated with gumming around the wet sap in your mouth like teeth whitening and antibacterial action resulting in fresh breath, but I think the downsides outweigh the benefits here. You won’t be kissing on any ladies with fresh breath if you’re smacking on a big gob of tree goo while you talk to them. Just brush your teeth.
And this is basically my point here. There may be some benefits associated with chewing mastic gum, but when are you actually going to chew it to gain those benefits? Are you going to set aside 30 minutes a day to chew gum alone in your room?
What Does Mastic Gum Taste Like?
I really enjoyed the flavor of mastic gum. It was surprising, for sure, but once I figure out what was going on it was good. When I saw the translucent whitish-yellow, lightly dusted pieces in the tin, they looked quite vibrant and sweet. Like something you’d get in a candy store.
They are not sweet. There is no sugar added. No sugar added is probably why you see so many complaints about the flavor on Amazon.
You know what else doesn’t have sugar added to it? Coffee. Whiskey. Cigars. Olive oil. Loose leaf tea. There’s tons of “delicious” tasting things which are not sugared up. You just have to know what you’re consuming.
The mastic gum taste has been described as “bitter”, but I disagree with that. I would call it herbal and earthy. It’s definitely a natural-type thing. I found it very tasty. Though I’m not into the chewing thing, I’ll definitely keep my pack around and use it like a hard candy while I’m working at the computer.
The Unspoken Side Effects Of Mastic Gum
Lots of people ask questions about the side effects of chewing mastic gum, and while there are no specific medical side effects associated with chewing mastic gum, if you are consuming it as a pill, powder, or extract/oil, there have been some reviewers reporting various negative side effects after consuming it.
Of course, with the internet and self diagnosis, who really knows what actually happened. The main thing is to watch how much you consume, and it’s possible to consume a lot more when taking an extract versus simply chewing.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that the lesser known main side effect of chewing mastic gum is looking like a fucking loser.
Does Mastic Gum Work?
Yes, mastic gum may have some health benefits due to its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties. It may help to improve blood flow, prevent cavities and promote gum health. It can also promote gut health and protect the lining of the stomach.
The thing to keep in mind is that results are hard to measure. “Improving your gut health” or slightly whitening your teeth over time, and these types of benefits are quite subjective. Many of the supposed benefits of mastic gum are hard to measure.
If you don’t have any precise ailments, then mastic gum is unlikely to provide you with any real, measurable health benefits other than being able to tell your friends a cool story about how you chew tree sap from Greece.
If you do have some precise ailments for which you think mastic gum can help, standard advice would be to talk to your doctor first. If you are more of a natural and herbal medicine type of person, do something precise like take notes to measure if mastic gum working for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Buy Mastic Gum On Amazon?
Yes, you can buy mastic gum from Amazon, but I prefer to support small businesses, and really enjoyed the flavor and quality of the gum I purchased from Apollo Gum
Does Mastic Gum For Gastritis Work?
Yes, in some cases mastic gum can help reduce stomach acid and protect the lining of your stomach and intestines [source]
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