This section reveals some of the common and intriguing myths in the world of medicine and discusses some of the exciting recent medical discoveries and how they affect your world.


1. "IF YOU SWALLOW CHEWING GUM IT TAKES SEVEN YEARS TO DIGEST"

This is not true...if anything, it might actually speed up the digestive process since most gum contains an artificial sweetener called Sorbitol that acts as a laxative. Thus, eventhough the gum may not be broken down by the enzymes in the stomach and intestines, it passes right on through the gastrointestinal tract quite quickly and is still relatively intact...meaning that the gum that goes in your mouth actually comes out the other end looking much like it did in the package (minus the flavor). Chewing gum researchers (dubblebubbleologists) have discovered that the use of gum after abdominal surgery helps to prevent prolonged paralysis of the peristalsis within the peritoneum (wrap your tongue around that one ten times)...thus, a stick of gum after an operation may be better than a stick of dynamite to get them bowels moving again...