Can't get a song out of your head? CHEW GUM! Study finds solution to prevent catchy lyrics turning into 'brainworms'

  • Reading scientists say chewing gum helps you forget a song
  • In a study people were less likely to think about it when chewing
  • And they were a third less likely to 'hear' it when chewing gum
  • Results suggests same technique could stop other intrusive thoughts 

By Jonathan O'Callaghan for MailOnline

Published: 08:09 EST, 22 April 2015 | Updated: 16:31 EST, 22 April 2015

We’ve all been there: you hear a catchy song and for days - or even weeks - on end you just can’t get it out of your head.

Known as an earworm or brainworm, the effect has been studied before - but its cause, and how to get rid of it, is poorly understood.

Now researchers say they have an answer; chewing gum after hearing a catchy song will help you think about it less often.

Reading scientists say chewing gum helps you forget a song. In a study people were less likely to think about it when chewing (stock image shown). And they were a third less likely to 'hear' it when chewing gum. The results suggests same technique could stop other intrusive thoughts

Reading scientists say chewing gum helps you forget a song. In a study people were less likely to think about it when chewing (stock image shown). And they were a third less likely to 'hear' it when chewing gum. The results suggests same technique could stop other intrusive thoughts

The study was carried out by scientists at the University of Reading.

In the research 98 volunteers were played the ‘catchy tunes’ Play Hard by David Guetta and Payphone by Maroon 5.

POSSIBLE EARWORM TRIGGERS 

- Recent music exposure

- Repeated music exposure

- Word triggers (eg. the word ‘faith’)

- People triggers (where sight or memory of a person is associated with a song)

- Situation trigger (eg. weddings can cause you to remember your own first dance song)

- Stress

- Surprise

- Dreams

- Mind wandering

Over the next three minutes, they were then asked to hit a key every time they thought of the songs - while chewing gum, not chewing gum or tapping their finger.

While chewing gum, volunteers reported thinking of the song less often than when they weren’t chewing gum, or when they were told to tap their finger instead.

And chewing gum also reduced the amount they ‘heard’ the song in their minds by a third.

The study is the first to examine the effects of chewing gum on earworms - and it suggests it could also be used to stop other unwanted or intrusive thoughts.

‘Interfering with our own “inner speech” through a more sophisticated version of the gum-chewing approach may work more widely,’ said Dr Phil Beaman, from the University’s School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, who led the study.

In the research 98 volunteers were played the ‘catchy tunes’ such as Play Hard by David Guetta and Payphone by Maroon 5 (pictured). Over the next three minutes, they were then asked to hit a key every time they thought of the songs - while chewing gum, not chewing gum or tapping their finger

In the research 98 volunteers were played the ‘catchy tunes’ such as Play Hard by David Guetta and Payphone by Maroon 5 (pictured). Over the next three minutes, they were then asked to hit a key every time they thought of the songs - while chewing gum, not chewing gum or tapping their finger

While chewing gum, volunteers reported thinking of the song less often than when they weren’t chewing gum, or when they were told to tap their finger instead. And chewing gum also reduced the amount they ‘heard’ the song in their minds by a third (stock image shown)

While chewing gum, volunteers reported thinking of the song less often than when they weren’t chewing gum, or when they were told to tap their finger instead. And chewing gum also reduced the amount they ‘heard’ the song in their minds by a third (stock image shown)

‘However more research is needed to see whether this will help counter symptoms of obsessive-compulsive and similar disorders.’

In a previous study by the University of Reading in 2009, it was found that almost any song can become an earworm.

A recent poll suggested over 90 per cent of the population experience them at least once a week with 15 per cent classifying their earworms as ‘disturbing’.

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