Is it okay for your toddler to chew gum?
My 22-month-old son likes to chew gum. Are there any health risks; especially if he swallows it?
Question:Robert Steele
Robert W. Steele, MD, is a board certified pediatrician at St. John's Regional Health Center in Springfield, MO. He graduated from medical... Read more
I can remember my friends in fifth grade telling me not to swallow my gum because it wouldn't get digested and might remain in my intestines for years. But like many myths school-aged kids like to propagate, the "forever-lasting swallowed gum" falls under the category of fiction. And while it is true that gum tends to be poorly digested, it simply means that it passes through the digestive system relative intact. Therefore, the occasional swallowing of gum causes no significant alimentary problems.
However, gum poses a different risk in the toddler and young child, namely choking. Food causes most episodes of choking in children today. So, just because a child can chew any particular food, doesn't mean he should. This is primarily due to the normal development of eating ability during the infant and toddler years. Certain foods require a grinding component to eat. These are usually the harder foods such as peanuts, fresh carrots, hard candy, grapes, etc. But children do not learn to perform this grinding motion well until about age four. In addition, children under the age of three tend to not have the coordination to protect their airway while laughing or horsing around when food in their mouths.
The government requires that toys for children under three years be no smaller than 1 1/4 inches in diameter and 2 1/4 inches long. This is primarily to avoid a child of this age from choking on the object while playing. However, this is a good size rule to consider with anything a child might put in his mouth while playing.
I'm sure your son enjoys the texture and taste gum can provide, but I would have to strongly advise against him chewing it. Most gum is not of the size that it could completely occlude the airway of child; however, if it is inhaled, it could still cause significant respiratory difficulty and would need to be retrieved by a procedure requiring general anesthesia. Gum chewing is probably best postponed until at least after age four.
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