chewing gum may speed recovery from colon surgery

Filed in archive Studies , Treatment on February 22, 2006

This entry is submitted via Creative Reporter:

Patients who chew gum after colon surgery may recover more quickly and suffer fewer complications, according to Dr Rob Schuster and colleagues at the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, California.

Any type of abdominal surgery can disrupt bowel function, and it may be some time before the intestines start working properly again. Prolonged delays can lead to longer stays in hospital, and complications such as infection, vomiting, swelling of the abdomen, and breathing difficulties.

Research published in the Archives of Surgery involved 34 patients who had had part of their colon removed for cancer or diverticulitis. Those who were given sugarless gum to chew for an hour three times daily were quicker to feel hungry, to pass gas, and to have their first bowel movement after surgery. They also left hospital sooner.

It is thought that chewing promotes the release of hormones that spur the digestive system back into action. Eating can achieve this, but patients are often unable to tolerate food, or even water, soon after colon surgery. Chewing gum presented no such problems.

This is a small study that needs to be confirmed in larger trials, but the researchers suggest that chewing gum may be an "inexpensive and helpful" addition to the post-operative care of colon surgery patients.

by Wendy Anne Prosser, a freelance writer and editor.