I still contemplate what my mom warned me against. Do not swallow bubblegum, it is dangerous for you. Is it really? Many believe that it stays in your digestive system for many years. Not true at all. People still remember the Alamo, but there is another interesting side-story to the historical event. The birth of chewing gum, Santa Anna gave hell to Sam Houston and gum to the world.
A key event in the history of chewing gum involved the notorious Mexican General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the very man who ordered the taking of the Alamo and had all its defenders put to death. Santa Anna introduced chicle, a rain-forest tree resin, to New York inventor Thomas Adams with the idea of marketing chicle as a rubber substitute. That plan did not see fruition, but the resin did prove to be useful as a chewing-gum base. Today the Adams name still appears on boxes of Chiclets. (source)
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The modern day chewing gums are made of four major ingredients including synthetic rubber, plastic, sugar, and coloring (dye). Modern day gums are produced from synthetic polymers such as styrene-butadiene rubbers and polyvinyl acetate. The final product is composed of 60% sugar, 20% corn syrup, and only 20% actual gum material. (source)