The study, whereby a researcher based at the University of Rhode Island (URI), evaluated the effects of chewing sugar-free gum on weight management, was supported by a $25,000 research award from the Wrigley Science Institute and reported to the annual meeting of the Obesity Society in the US this week.

According to Kathleen Melanson, associate professor of nutrition and food sciences at URI, nerves in the muscles of the jaw are stimulated by the motion of chewing and send signals to the ap...