top of page
Search

Chewing Gum that May Reduce the Spread of Influenza and Oral Herpes Viruses

  • Writer: FibonacciMD
    FibonacciMD
  • 4 days ago
  • 2 min read

New study introduces a groundbreaking antiviral chewing gum made with Flt3 Receptor Interacting Lectin (FRIL), a potent compound from lablab beans.

Lablab Bean Pods
Lablab Bean Pods

In an interesting study published in January 2025, scientists created a chewing gum with antiviral properties that potentially could decrease the transmission of communicable diseases such as influenza and oral herpes simplex (cold sores).


Flt3 Receptor Interacting Lectin (FRIL), a substance which comes from lablab beans, has been found to have significant anti-viral properties against a wide range of pathogens.  It has binding sites that can attach and entrap viruses and neutralize them.  The theory is that by trapping viruses, the gum can reduce their spread.  The researchers made a chewing gun with FRIL in a gum made from lablab bean powder. Lablab purpureus is commonly called hyacinth bean and is edible when immature, however the mature seeds (beans) contain toxins that need to be boiled out before eating.   


In this pilot study, they reported that the FRIL in the lablab bean chewing gum was stable for at least 2.2 years.  Using masticator simulators to reproduce chewing, they reported that 95% of the FRIL was released from the gum within one hour, with most of it released in the first half-hour.


The chewing gum was tested for its ability to reduce viral loads by using a plaque reduction neutralization test which is the gold standard test for antibody neutralization of viruses. The FRIL lablab bean chewing gum caused a 95% decrease in the amount of active virus for both the herpes simplex and influenza samples.


Comments:

Oral Herpes simplex or herbes labialis which causes cold sores are thought to be carried by 64% of the world’s population.  It is very contagious, can cause pain, be unsightly, and be recurrent.  In an immunocompromised person it sometimes may disseminate causing serious body-wide infections.


The CDC estimated that in the U.S. during the 2024-2025 flu season, 46-81 million people were infected with  influenza with 600,000 to 1.3 million hospitalizations and 26,000 to 130,000 deaths.    


A chewing gum that could effectively decrease the transmission of these diseases by decreasing oral viral load would be a significant step forward for public health.  This is just a pilot study, and more research is needed to assess effectiveness and safety.


The authors state that investigations by other researchers are already underway to determine if oral COVID-19 viruses can be neutralized by a chewing gum containing antiviral substances.





References

Comments

bottom of page