Excerpts Via Wired:
[i]“While previous studies achieved similar results — chewing gum is often a better test aid than caffeine — this latest research investigated the time course of the gum advantage. It turns out to be rather short lived, as gum chewers only showed an increase in performance during the first 20 minutes of testing. After that, they performed identically to non-chewers.”
“scientists at Coventry University found that people chewing mint gum showed a dramatic decrease in feelings of sleepiness.”
“gum chewers were more attentive than non-chewers, with elevated heart rates and cortisol levels. They also had much faster reaction times, especially on more difficult reaction tests. They even appeared to be in a better mood.”
“chewing decreased performance on tests of short-term memory that involve serial recall. Tapping with the hands achieved the same results, suggesting that the rhythmic pulse of bodily movement might interfere with the memorization of ordered lists.”[/i]