Chewing gum → chew less often
Most gum bases are synthetic polymers, and a pilot study found gum sheds microplastics into saliva. Natural gums shed similar amounts, so the real swap is chewing less.
- Plastic avoided
- ≈ 100 g a year
- Typical cost
- £2 – £4
- Swap from
- Conventional chewing gum
- Last reviewed
- 26 September 2026
How strong is the evidence?
How the dials work- Exposure evidenceHow strong is the evidence that the plastic version exposes you to microplastics or plastic chemicals?
- Weak · 1/4
- Environmental evidenceHow strong is the evidence that this swap cuts environmental harm over the product's whole life?
- Emerging · 2/4
- Claim verificationHow well has the alternative's plastic-free claim been verified?
- No product yet
Why swap
Conventional gum base is made of synthetic polymers. A 2025 UCLA pilot study (not yet peer reviewed) found gum released around 100 microplastic particles per gram chewed, and, to the researchers' surprise, natural chicle-based gums released similar levels to synthetic ones.
What to look for
- Chewing less often, or not at all
- Chicle-based gum if you chew: it avoids a synthetic gum base that litters pavements for years, even if it sheds similar particles
Watch out for
- "Gum base" on a label almost always means synthetic polymers
- Switching to natural gum alone may not cut the microplastics you swallow
Evidence and sources
More swaps in drinks & snacks
Bottled water → tap water in a steel bottle
Bottled water carries hundreds of thousands of plastic particles per litre. UK tap water is cheap and safe.
Swap first · about 3.0 kg of plastic a year
Plastic tea bags → loose-leaf or plastic-free bags
Many tea bags are sealed with polypropylene or made of plastic mesh. Hot water plus plastic, several times a day; how much reaches your cup is still debated.
High priority · about 120 g of plastic a year
Plastic coffee pods → cafetière or moka pot
One pod a day is over a kilo of hard-to-recycle packaging a year, and hot pressurised water runs through plastic.
High priority · about 1.0 kg of plastic a year