Would you chew a piece of gum that someone else had chewed? (There's a reason)
By shywolf
@shywolf (4514)
United States
February 11, 2007 12:31pm CST
Eww *laugh* I was just reading a story in the news about four different schools in Maryland where students were asked to chew the same piece of gum, passing it around. Apparently, the lesson was introduced by a pregnancy counselling center (who sent a representitive to the schools) in a demonstration of how easily sexually transmitted diseases can be passed around. The aim, from what I read, was to see how many people would actually feel comfortable enough to do it. And although 100 kids participated, not all of them actually chewed the gum.
Anyway, the lesson was deemed unsanitary by the health counsel (no doubt! LOL) and school officials are now saying that representatives from that pregnancy counselling center will not be asked back to the school district to speak to their students in the future.
I sure wouldn't have chewed that piece of gum, lol!
What do you think?
34 people like this
85 responses
@ItTakesAllSorts (4096)
•
11 Feb 07
A good idea in trying to explain how sexually transmitted diseases can spread so quickly, but I don't think they needed to actually get the kids to do it.
I am chewing a piece of gum, while I read your discussion and it turned my stomach straightaway, Gross thought!!!!
I remember being shown photo's at school of the different diseases and that was bad enough.
What will they think up next.
Throw a few kids from behind parked cars to demonstrate the dangers lol!!!
3 people like this
@shywolf (4514)
• United States
11 Feb 07
I think that you've got a good point. They could have brought up the gum as an example - even had a piece of gum there - but not actually done it. That might still have gotten the message across.
LOL about your parked cars idea! I sure hope that schools never go that far! ^_^
I'm sorry that you happened to be chewing a piece of gum when you read this! I hate to think that I turned your stomach *laugh* But I'm glad that you agree, it's pretty gross to think about chewing an already chewed piece of gum. I wouldn't even want to do that if it were chewed by someone I was very close to, lol!
2 people like this
@volcom (161)
• United States
11 Feb 07
This would not be a good idea to do. It can cause that one virus where you share peoples saliva i forgot the name of it. I would never do this. This actually sounds sort of sick. Atleast the counseling center will not be asked back because this test shouldn't be happening again in my opinion. I mean they could just teach it and not pass around previously chewed on gum by other people and risk kids getting sick.
@ESKARENA1 (18261)
•
11 Feb 07
i certainly would not have chewed the gum either lol, however what an absolutely brillient way of getting the point over to kids, it would get my backing every time
1 person likes this
@Alexandria37 (5717)
• Ireland
11 Feb 07
Oh, that sounds so disgusting. I would never even chew a piece of gum after my husband. As a matter of fact I don't like chewing gum at all, but the thoughts of chewing it after somebody else just makes me sick. I was just about to have my dinner, but I think I will have to defer it for a couple of hours until I can forget about this discussion.
1 person likes this
@Lil_miz_ice_x (614)
•
11 Feb 07
I suppose, in principle, there's something quite productive from this lesson -- I mean, it should really shock the pupils into realising exactly what the *consequences* of their actions could be -- having said that, you would not get that gum within 60 meters of my mouth!
1 person likes this
@brokentia (10389)
• United States
13 Feb 07
Nope! I would not have chewed the gum!
I can understand how they would say that it was deemed unsanitary. but at the same time, they sure did have a very good point!
I think I would have used that point but not actually made the kids pass the gum around. A show of hands would say who would chew the gum and who wouldn't.
But again...it is was a very good thought process for comparison. :)
@missyd79 (3438)
• United States
13 Feb 07
i will chew a peice of gum that my son has already chewed but no longer wants but that is as far as i go. I think that demistration was a great thing they did, because it shows that how STD's can spread and it also shows, that you are not only sleeping with that one person but every other person that they slept with ect ect.
@Marie2473 (8512)
• Sweden
12 Feb 07
I would not have chewed that gum, however I have taken my bfs at times - but i guess it is different since I am in an intimate relation with him. But to be the last one out of a hundred to chew a gum - well - not for me thanx!
@AskAlly (3625)
• Canada
13 Feb 07
NOOOOOOO Way. I have been stuck with enough stale gum from my boys when they were growing up. They always wanted to split out their gum at the most inopportune times.
I would never take a piece of gum that someone else had chewed on in this day and age. Yuck. What a great way to get Hep C or something. Yuck.lol
@princessmelokia (513)
• Canada
12 Feb 07
no , i wouldn't have chewed the gum. . .i think that is disgusting and can understand why the people would not be asked to come back to the school to speak to the kids. if that happened at my son's school, i would have pulled him from that school and put him in a different one
@GardenGerty (160949)
• United States
12 Feb 07
Makes my stomache churn, although it was a good point. I think the kids should have just been told to "Imagine" chewing the gum. More sanitary, a teaching example we used in school about germs was to spray hands with cooking spray, sprinkle on cinnamon {just one person} then have them shake hands with lots of other people. That cinnamon spread everywhere, and was a visible object lesson, inexpensive, and no harm done.
@pooksywooksy (1006)
• Indonesia
12 Feb 07
No I wouldn't chew the gum. Yuck. lol
I think describing how easily se*ually transmitted diseases can be passed around, does not need to be vulgarly being demonstrated like that. I wouldn't want to participate in this kind of action, not in a million years. I'm not into chewing gums, either anyway. lol.
@rajkumarrita (249)
• India
12 Feb 07
Well if i Were There,I Wouldn,t Have Chewed it any Cost
At all.
As i don,t Eat Anything Than has been Tasted by anyone.
