Menu

Sugar Free Gum Without Artificial Sweeteners or Colors? It Exists!

April 5, 2011   50 Comments

Sugar free gum is a great tool for helping you lose weight. AND, chewing a piece of gum (instead of a cookie) can help you relieve stress.

Aspartame Free Gum

If you grab some gum when you feel the desire to eat, you will give yourself a chance to become aware of your hunger. Are you hungry or do you just want to chew on something?

The problem is that the big commercial sugar free gums (Orbit and Extra) use aspartame, which many of us want to avoid. The Center For Science in the Public Interest has a nice review here aspartame about the potential adverse health effects of aspartame.

What to do?

Snack Girl is on the case with two different gums that don't include aspartame or artificial colors (see the article F.D.A. Panel to Consider Warnings for Artificial Food Colorings, March 29th, 2011).

Both Pür Gum and Glee Gum offer an aspartame and artificial color free choice.

gleegum

Of course, they are using another chemical to make up for their lack of sugar - xylitol. Xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar substitute found in many fruits and vegetables and it is "tooth friendly".

You can't eat a lot of it because it may cause diarrhea when you have over 65 grams of it - but the piece of gum you are chewing will only have 2 grams. You will be fine if you stick to 20 pieces of gum per day.

Unlike aspartame, xylitol isn't man-made and hasn't been implicated in any cancer causing studies.

Pür gum comes in a couple of different (and yummy) flavors, pomegranate mint, spearmint, and peppermint.

Glee Gum is all-natural, gluten-free chewing gum with no artificial coloring, flavoring, sweeteners nor preservatives. Glee Gum is the only gum in North America made the old-fashioned way using chicle. Chicle is a natural tree sap harvested sustainably from the rainforests of Central America.

All chewing gum used to made with chicle, but today most gum is made entirely from synthetic stuff. Glee Gum uses chicle because it is an eco-friendly way to help conserve the rainforest.

Glee Gum has a sugar free version made with xylitol and they have gum that will put you back a mere FIVE calories with sugar in it.

For example, their cinnamon flavor has sugar, glucose, gum base, rice syrup, natural cinnamon flavor, gum arabic, red beet color, resinous glaze, beeswax and carnauba wax and it is five calories for 2 pieces. Check out Glee Gum's store locator to find it near you.

Both of these gums are great options but they are not ubiquitous. I could not find an aspartame free option at my local Stop & Shop so you are going to have to go out of your way to get your hands on these brands of gum.

Do you want to avoid asparame laden gums?

These products were received for review consideration. No other compensation was provided.

Want to read about snacks?
Three Reasons To Avoid Yoplait Greek Yogurt
Replace French Fries with This Easy and Healthy Snack
Try This: Vegan Toast
Now You Can Eat A Banana Split Without Splitting Your Pants

Get Free Email Updates! Yes please!

50 Comments:

I have seen Glee Gum at my local natural food store, but it is quite expensive. I have to applaud them for making an all-natural chewing gum. I hate aspertame!

I love Glee gum! I actually get headaches from fake sweeteners. My doctor's advice: don't eat them! It's hard for me to find gum w/out fake stuff.

Glee is sold at Whole Foods and Trader Joes (so not out of your way per se if you live near one of those stores!)

Doesn't Trident use Xylitol in their gum? I remember the dentist mentioning it to me. I avoid the Extra's and Orbits but ususaly allow the kids to chew on Trident? Maybe I am wrong on this one :)

There's also Spry gum - http://www.xlear.com/xylitol-gum.aspx

comes in several different flavors and uses xylitol...it loses flavor a little quicker than most gum but definitely another aspartame-free option and it's sold at Whole Foods and other natural health food stores, I believe...

I haven't chewed a piece of gum in over 2 years because of the aspartame. I have always hated it though when my breath needed a freshener. Thanks for sharing these options!!

We are big gum chewers... I like Trident, it is made with Xylitol. My son chews Trident too and the dentist said it is good for your teeth. The dentist gives out xylitol suckers to the kids after their check ups. This is an interesting post though. Thanks!

I just bought a pack of a new gum at our health food store yesterday. It is called treehugger gum and it is a bag of gumballs for .99! Ingredients are cane sugar, dextrose, gum base and then natural flavors.... you can read more about it at www.treehuggergum.com

My kids love it and it looks like gumballs.

5 flavors come in each bag.

Sara

http://cookwith5kids.blogspot.com/

never heard of it and don't remember seeing anything like it @ my whole foods market. too bad u don't have any free samples.

Beware that xyllitol is harmful for your pets. I chew the Spry gum myself, but am very careful about not leaving it around. I don't think my dog would like it anyway- he's more into spoiled meat!

I LOVE PUR Gum! Have tried Spry too and it's great. Will be excited to find some "Glee" gum and give it a go too. Thanks for this one Snack Girl :)

I can't tolerate Xylitol. I bought some mint gum online with xylitol. It was very expensive. It gives me horrible gas and a stomach ache, even one piece. It's good for your teeth, so that's a shame.

I wish there was gum with Stevia. Love it!

I've tried Spry and Glee Gum but the flavor only lasts for like 2 minutes (whereas Extra lasts for like 20 minutes or more). You also can't blow bubbles with Glee Gum and Spry. I'll check out the Treehugger and Pur gum (if I can even find them). If not, I guess I'll just stick to Extra gum till I find a better alternative that's as pleasing.

Be very careful with Trident. Go here to read what else is in their gum. http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/phenylalanine-000318.htm

It's something called PHENYLALANINE and it scares me because I have been chewing this gum for years. Somehow it's related to ASPARTAME which is also in their gum. Thanks for listing the other gums. I will be checking them out as I recently discovered some health issues I have been having may be aspartame related.

Because I have Celiac I read the ingredients in everything. I am also allergic to Aspartame. I could not believe how many gums they are now making with aspartame in them! You will be as surprised as I was when you read the ingredients on your favorite gums. I am so glad to find there are gums made without aspartame.

I looked through lots of major maker gums and found that for some reason Dentyne Fire Spicy Cinnamon contains no Asparatame / Nutrasweet, i.e., PHENYLKETONURICS: CONTAINS PHENYLALANINE Lots of names for one toxic ingredient. All Dentyne's other gums do. You can verify by looking here: http://www.dentyne.com/NutritionalInformation.aspx

I've bought it for quite a while as I can't afford more natural gums.

There is a gum made with stevia.Google it.

one of the major problems with Crohn's Disease is the lack of nutritional intake due the inability to take in a variety of foods that often hurt the individual. Vitamingum, being aspartame and sugar free and, fortified with 12 essential vitamins helped my son a lot. Those who suffer from this debilitating disease can actually benefit from chewing this gum because it is rapidly absorbed through the mucus linings and tongue.

For those who think Trident is "healthy" because it has no aspartame, it still has Acesulfame K and Sucralose (Splenda) in it. I am sorry if you think that makes it healthy just because it has xylitol in it as well. Do more research, especially if it will affect your health.

Hershey Company makes Sugarless Bubble Yum with no aspartame in it. Commonly found and enjoyable to chew.

Chicklet's is made with sugar only. There are also a few old brands made by Beeman's- Clove, Clark's, and Teaberry gum that are sugar only brands. You can find Chicklet's at most dollar Stores cheap. Packages with 6 boxes/$1. Cracker Barrel and Amazon both carry the Beeman's brand gums at a higher price.

I got rid of all artificial sweeteners from my diet several years ago. I was sick for a couple of days until it all

Tree Hugger Gum is now available at 29 Whole Foods Stores in the Mid Atlantic. Only natural colors. Gluten Free, Nut Free, Dairy Free and my little boy loves daddy's gum. Flavors - all in one bag: Tangerine, Classic Bubblegum, Lemon-Lime, Orange, and Berry

Actually there is one gum at the supermarket that does not contain aspartame. Dentyne fire. None of the other Dentyne flavors are aspartame free only the cinnamon. It does contain other artificial ingredients but if you are looking for some aspartame-free gum that doesn't cost 3$ a pack it's the only one.

Trident does have Xylitol but unfortunately it also contains PHENYLALANINE, it's highlighted in white on the package under the ingredients (not on the back).

I was disappointed that the Glee Gum Mint Flavored is colored with titanium dixoide. I returned mine - - and exchanged it for the Lemon Lime flavor which is colored with beta carotene. Don't know why they had to add titanium dixoide. From what I've read, it causes cancer.

People do not need to fear whether or not artificial sweeteners will cause cancer. There has been zero clear evidence to support the theory that they can cause cancer in humans! Just want to share my thoughts on the issue.

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/artificia…

Trident says some flavors are also sweetened with aspartame. Not worth the risk. Aspartame makes me very ill and I was never one of "those people" used Equal all the time. Now I cannot touch it! (I really miss Crystal Light :( )

Just so everyone knows, it isn't just sugar free gum that contains aspartame anymore. It's just about all of them. I had a lovely ER visit after chewing 1 stick of juicy fruit. (I have a severe allergy to aspartame.) So if you are aspartame sensitive or allergic please read all labels.

I chew gum all the time and just learned of the terrible things in it!!!! I am unable to find the PUR or glee brands in my area. If you are able could you please send samples? 4987E 900N Fair Oaks IN 47943

Some Trident gum contains Xylitol, but a lot of it has other artificial sweeteners, so be careful and read the package. Almost all of it contains artificial colors. Red 40 and Yellow 5 have both been linked to cancer as well as hyperactivity in children.

Does anybody know an aspartame-free gum available in Europe? I'm living in Austria and the only gum w/o aspartame I've found is Hubba Bubba, it's got plain ol' sugar in it. But the taste is gone quite quickly.

The only "grown up" gum I have found is Chiclets. I chew peppermint flavored but you are right, the flavor is gone after about 5 minutes. But I have learned to live with it since I will never chew gum with aspartame again. For those in the US the only place I can find it is at Walgreens or at some Dollar stores. Hope that helps!

I forgot to add that there are other gums out there that are aspartame free but they are usually expensive. Chiclets have plain sugar in them and very cheap! I live cheap. :)

For the woman in Europe...I apologize for not saying you can find Chiclets on Amazon. It's the end of the day and I am tired so I forgot to add that. Sorry. Hope you find something!

Today I came across Vitacare sugar free/aspertame/sucralose free gum at Whole Foods. Tastes great and not too sweet. The sweet taste does diminish quickly but then levels out so you can keep chewing with some residual flavor for quite awhile. I quit smoking some years ago and became addicted to chewing gum but the stuff they sell on the commercial market is too sweet and actually makes me somewhat ill if I chew too much. Even Wrigley's old standby's of Doublemint, Spearmint and Juicy Fruit have switched to Aspertame and eliminated the sugared version. These old standby's from my growing up years 50's and 60's are gone and the new versions taste awful to me.

Vitacare has some other products as well.

http://www.vitacareworld.com/

Does anyone know if there is aspartame-free kosher chewing gum?

Trident (which I'm holding in my hand right now) has Xylitol AND Aspartame in it. I have the original flavor, so maybe it varies based on the flavor...? Good info, thx for sharing

I started to chew extra gum because of the doller tree, has it so cheap. I started to buy extra at Costco, 14 packs for $6 dollars plus some change. I have been going through the gum, faster and faster all most like a drug. Now I know why, we saw a program about the aspertain and it makes me sick thinking how much i have chewed. Well, 11 packs are going to get dumped, I hope I won't have any withdrawals.

My son was just telling me yesterday that the Trident he was given as a gift has xylitol. Indeed it does, but when I read the ingredients is ALSO has aspertame. It's a NO for us.

Trident does have aspartame in it. If you read down through the label, you will see that it does. It's first ingredients is Sorbitol. Which can be hard on people with certain bowel problems.

This is the ingredients for the sugar free spearmint.

Sorbitol, Gum Base, Xylitol, Glycerin, Natural and Artificial Flavoring, Mannitol, Less than 2% of: Acesulfame, Potassium, Aspartame, BHT (to Maintain Freshness), Blue 1 Lake, Soy Lecithin, Sucralose, and Yellow 5 Lake.

IT bothers me, because growing up I loved Trident, but now have to search far and wide for a gum that does not contain splenda or aspartame or sorbitol. thank you for letting us know there are artifical sweetner free gums out there.

I chew Chiclets now and can only find it at Walgreens here in Houston. It's cheap and good old fashioned gum with sugar just like when we were kids. It's the only gum I know of without aspartame or any other artificial sweeteners in it that is not bubble gum or expensive gum you find at health food stores. :)

Just was chewing some trident and looked at the package it says right there in the ingredient list ASPARTAME. Yikes!

Found you looking for aspartame free gum!

I like to chew gum if I can't brush my teeth after a meal. Threw the Trident gum away when I realized it had Aspartame in it. I have some lumps on my tongue. I believe they are caused by me chewing unhealthy gum since they seem to get bigger after chewing. Glad to have some healthy alternatives even if they are more expensive. My health is worth it.

HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points. This is one of the food safety systems based on prevention methodology. It carries out the following 2 functions predominantly:

Assessment of the Methodology of Food Manufacturing

Pointing out at the Problems that could Occur owing to Usage of that methodology

If necessary, the HACCP precludes hazardous food from getting to the consumers.

The HACCP revolves around the following 7 commandments:

Assessment of food security in all areas i.e. organic, substantial and natural.

Looking out for obstacles to food safety during all stages of manufacturing

Correcting any procedure that is causing harm to food safety

Maintaining a register of it all more information

http://www.qsindia.in/hazard-analysis-and-critical-control-…

Chiclets gum has been around over one hundred years and contains sugar, not aspartame as its sweetener. A web address for an aspartame free gum list is gumwithotaspartame.com . It list nine different gums without aspartame.

One piece of sugarfree gum (or anything sugerfree) with Xylitol in it will kill your dog . . .

Aspartame is harmless. Aspartame is composed of two amino acids, two of the twenty basic amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine, which are programmed by DNA. Amino acids compose all proteins. We are basically composed of proteins. If you haven't eaten or drank for a while and you taste something sweet in your mouth you are tasting your own aspartame that happened to form from loose amino acids from your proteins in your mouth. It is obvious that aspartame is absolutely harmless.

Hey Lisa, have you ever had a chance to Simply Gum? I feel taste is quite different from other known brands and they claim that their gum is aspartame free and I think they are right.

I gotta say, I've tried Pur gum before and thought it was fantastic. I used to eat a ton of sugar infused gum. Then I decided it was healthier to go sugar-free. I was proud of myself for that decision but then I started reading about aspartame and such - holy cow!

From what I've ready, there isn't anything that's 100% damning about the stuff but it still makes me a bit uneasy. I've switch to chewing Pur gum pretty much 100% and I feel great about it. Now I still get to have my gum addiction but no worrying!

Add a comment:

(required)

(required, never published)


© 2024 Snack-Girl.com