CHILDREN could soon be given the go-ahead to chew gum in class after boffins discovered it increases brain power.

Tests by psychologists showed chewing can improve people's memory ability by up to 40 per cent.

The amazing results could mean teachers may have to make a u-turn in the future and allow pupils to eat in the classroom.

The findings were revealed at the British Psychology Society's annual conference in Blackpool, yesterday.

The research was carried out by academics at Northumbria University's human cognitive neuro-science unit, who were looking at ways of improving memory.

Seventy-five students acted as test subjects for the controlled experiment.

They were split into three groups. One group was given sugar free gum to chew for 30 minutes. Another group sat in silence, and a third group made chewing motions, known as sham chewing, but without anything in their mouths.

Heart rates were monitored throughout the experiment and researchers Dr Andrew Scholey and Lucy Wilkinson said they were stunned by the results.

Ms Wilkinson, 22, a psychologist, said: "I read an article which discovered that animals that were unable to chew had impaired memory.

"I decided to try the theory to look at ways of improving human cognition and the results we found were amazing.

"We found that in one particular case, recollection improved by 40 per cent."

Test subjects were given a list of 15 words to remember and had to recall what they had seen before and after the experiment.

Ms Wilkinson said: "We found that in those that were chewing gum heart rate increased by five or six beats a minute.

"One of the theories is that chewing increases heart rate, which in turn increases delivery of oxygen and glucose to the brain, which increases its ability to perform tasks.

"Another theory is that the body releases insulin during eating, which is known to improve memory functioning in the brain.

"When we chew, the body prepares itself to receive food and so releases insulin. This happens when we chew gum.

"These are theories, but we do not know for certain why these improvements in memory have happened."

Dr Scholey said: "The research is in its early stages and we have presented our findings in the hope that more research will be carried out.

"But the potential is amazing and this research could be ground-breaking. If chewing gum improves brain power, then teachers might have to start allowing them to chew in class. That will certainly please the kids, but probably not the teachers."