Aspergum is the United States trademark name for an analgesic chewing gum, whose active ingredient is aspirin. Aspergum is owned by Retrobrands USA LLC.
Aspergum contained 227 mg (3½ grains) of aspirin, and was available in cherry and orange flavors.Aspirin , online reference, Complementary Medicine, University of Maryland Medical Center This product was generally used for the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-pyretic properties of its active ingredient. The Aspergum trademark is currently owned by Insight Pharmaceuticals,U.S. Trademark Notice-Acceptance-Renewal dated January 16, 2006 the same company that produces the aspirin- and caffeine-based Anacin.
History Medicated chewing gum containing aspirin was first sold in the United States in 1924.Washington, Neena et al. (21 December 2000) Physiological Pharmaceutics: Barriers to Drug Absorption. Page 49. Publisher: CRC. In December 1927, Frank M. Dillard and William C. Nalle formed the Dillard-Nalle company and sought U.S. trademark protection for Aspergum.United States Trademark No. 240,417. Dillard-Nalle then began selling their Dellard's Aspergum in the United States in 1928.Advertisement, Appleton Post Crescent, Wisconsin, 15 October 1930Sohn, Emily. (19 February 2007), "Chew on this: It's for your health Suppress appetite, boost memory, fight disease. Gums could do it all – thanks to the cheeks", Los Angeles Times, Section: Health; Page 1. it was an early example of a functional gum – chewing gum as a drug delivery system.
It was significant in the recognition of aspirin's antithrombotic effect, when general practitioner Lawrence Craven reported in 1953 that patients who chewed Aspergum as an analgesic after tonsillectomy tended to bleed more easily.Aspirin resistance, text MIM 608223, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man Aspirin and Coronary Thrombosis , Aspirin Foundation As a result of Dr. Craven's discovery through Aspergum in the 1950s, physicians themselves now often take low-dose aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes, and emergency rooms routinely give aspirin to patients who they suspect may be experiencing a heart attack.Graedon, Joe; Graedon, Teresa. (12 August 1997) The Baltimore Sun. Take two aspirin and sing "Happy Birthday." Section: Features; Page 4E.
In June 1993, Farmades spa of Rome, Italy began manufacturing Aspergum Confetti Gommosi Masticabili for sale in Italy.Farmaci Generici. – Il Miglior Prezzo – Acido Acetilasalicilico. Obtained 16 July 2007.
People have adopted their own uses for the gum. For example, in her 1997 book Streisand, Academy Award-winning American singer Barbra Streisand relates a story of how she filled in the gap caused by the removal of two front teeth with Aspergum when she began her career.Wiegand, David. (27 April 1997) San Francisco Chronicle. "Making sense of Streisand – How seeking her mother's approval and losing her father shaped her career." Section: Sunday Review; page 4.
In 1998, Gumtech announced that it was to produce Aspergum for Schering-Plough HealthCare Products.
Aspergum was discontinued in 2006. As of January 2016, Retrobrands USA LLC has obtained the trademark and plans to re-launch the brand.
See also Functional gum
References
External links Official Aspergum webpage