A brief history of chewing gum's evolution

Chewing gum is a well-known confectionary item not only among kids but also among people of all ages. From confectioneries to roadside tea stalls in Bangladesh, chewing gum is ubiquitous, and often doctors suggest their patients chew gum for their muscles to remain even more active. 

Even among athletes, chewing gum is quite popular during practice sessions, as it helps to eradicate the dryness of their mouths for the time being.

However, chewing gum is not a recent invention, and its history dates back to about nine thousand years ago when the inhabitants of northern and eastern Europe used to chew the branches of a particular type of plant. 

There were two particular motifs behind this: one is that their gum pain got assuaged due to it, and another is that they got a refreshing flavour by chewing it. 

Chewing gum's presence can be seen in many ancient civilisations, from the Mayan civilisation in the Americas to the Mexican Aztec civilisation. In the Aztec culture, there was even a separate guideline regarding how to chew gum.

Chewing the branches of the spruce tree was quite common among the natives of North America even before the age of discovery. 

After the European colonies' establishment, this trend got even bigger footing through commercialisation, where the sap of the spruce tree was mixed with flour extracted from maise. This is how chewing gum, as we know it, first came into being, thanks to John Curtis in 1840.

Many improvisations were made in the following decades, where sap from trees other than spruce was utilised for chewing gum. 

A native New Yorker named Thomas Adams came up with a new variant of chewing gum during the 1880s, and the industry started booming during the twentieth century, with the initiation of massive urban culture in the United States acting as a catalysing factor in this regard. 

After gaining widespread popularity in the United States, chewing gum started to spread globally. Companies like Wrigley and Adam's started exporting their products, which made chewing gum available to much of the global populace. 

Also, many variations came into chewing gum, with many flavours becoming gradually available in the market. The popularisation through mass media was also initiated through many advertisements, and chewing gum took the form it now has gradually.

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