The Chewing Gum: The odyssey of a proud Mayan legacy

Probably the last chewing gum you chewed was made in the US. It was most likely sweetened with a calorie-freesweetener and it was artificially flavored with an exotic fruit flavor. Maybe it contained an appetite suppressoror nicotine to reduce smoking. Perhaps you've never even thought about it or never wondered about the origin of this habit, so related to rebellious students and carefree western culture.

According to historical mention, in ancient Greece and Egypt, going all the way back to prehistoric times, people chewed tree and plant resins for their medicinal properties. The modern chewing gum has its origin in the rainforests between southeastern Mexico and northern Central America, an area known as the Great Peten, where the Maya culture blossomed more then two thousand years ago.

Mayans were the ones to begin the sap gathering of one of the most abundant trees in the area, the Chicozapote, by cutting the bark in zigzag so the sap would flow into containers set at the base of the tree. After a drying process, they obtained a chewable gum that they used to clean their teeth and to avoid hunger in fasting rituals.

The name given by Mayans to this gum was ''sicte'', meaning blood or vital fluid, and they traded it with other Mesoamerican people. Its use was extended over time, giving it the Aztec name of ''tzictli'' (meaning to stick) and from there it became ''chicle'' in Spanish. In Spain and the rest of Europe, it was used for hygiene purposes.

It seems to be that the chewing gum launch to the masses of an international market occurred due to an anecdote of the ex-president of Mexico, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. They say that during his exile in New York City, he met an inventive photographer whose name was Adams, and with whom he went into a discussion about creating a more elastic, resistant and cheaper material to produce coach tires.

It was then this resin that indigenous Mexicans had chewed for centuries came up in the conversation. The plan was to mix it with some kind of rubber. The original idea turned into a failure after one year of experimenting. Mr. Adams gave up even when he had a large amount of gum left. He didn't want to waste it, so his son offered it to some pharmacists along the US eastern coast for its sell as a hygienic product.

The first Adams Chiclets box was sold in the gum's original color and without flavor. Even so, the business grew with so much success that in 1879 a merchant from Louisville, KY, who already sold a sweetened resin as candy, ordered a Mexican gum shipment that he sweetened creating Adam's first competitor: Colgan.

Flavor was something a little bit harder to add because gum hardly absorbs as much flavor as it does sugar. In 1880, a popcorn salesman from Cleveland, OH had the idea of mixing flavors with corn syrup and then add the mixture to the gum. Since syrup is basically sugar, he succeeded in creating the first peppermint flavored chewing gum with the name of Yucatan.

Since then, the sweet refreshing flavor of chewing gum started to invade the Americas and England. A famous Latin-American good manners manual declared that chewing gum was of bad taste, especially among women. But more flavors, mainly fruity, were created in order to target consumers of both genders.

It wasn't until World War II when chewing gum reached the four corners of the globe. American soldiers took it along with them during their fights because it helped them to relax stress by exercising neck and face muscles. It also stimulates saliva secretion and inhibits hunger momentarily. It became of such importance that when the enemy discovered it, its transportation across the Gulf of Mexico had to be done with the escort of US submarines.

In the 1950's, a new low cost production synthetic polymer was discovered. This resulted in the export decline and the extraction became a traditional activity again. Nowadays, gum production is growing again because of the popularity natural products are gaining.

Chewing gum is an extended habit all over the world though it is restricted in schools because it is considered a lack of respect towards teachers, and an activity that makes difficult to concentrate. In Singapore, it was completely forbidden for 10 years because many sectors of the society complained about chewing gum making their streets, buildings and transport look dirty. People who sell or buy it could receive jail sentences. Today, it is only allowed for therapeutic purposes.

In San Luis Obispo, California, there is a wall in an alley by Higuera Street, over which youngsters began to stick chewing gum in the 1960's. People complained in the beginning but chewing gum kept on coming. Today, it is a locally-known monument to chewing gum. You will find chewing gum vending machines on the corners, if ever you want to contribute when visiting. Chew and stick!