UK study finds sugary chewing gum temporarily lowers blood pressure

Researchers at King’s College London published a study in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology showing that chewing a sugar‑containing gum after consuming nitrate‑rich vegetables, such as beetroot juice, can temporarily enhance the conversion of dietary nitrates to nitrite. In a crossover trial, participants who chewed sugary gum exhibited a 45 % increase in salivary nitrite and a 25 % rise in blood nitrite compared with sugar‑free gum, accompanied by an average reduction of nearly 3 mmHg in systolic and about 2 mmHg in diastolic blood pressure. The effect lasted only a few hours. The authors caution that regular consumption of sugary gum is not advised because of dental health risks and possible adverse cardiometabolic effects, but they suggest the findings could inform ways to boost the vascular benefits of nitrate‑rich foods.