The NHS could save £8.2m on dental treatment every year if all 12-year-olds chewed sugar-free gum after eating or drinking, according to new research.

It estimates the saving, equivalent to 364,000 dental check-ups, for chewing three pieces a day.

This is due to the role chewing gum plays in helping prevent tooth decay, researchers from the Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry said.

Now the once maligned minty mouthful is being celebrated as good for dental health, here are seven more facts to sink your teeth into.

Chewing gum has been banned in Singapore since 1992 after legislation was passed restricting the use, distribution and trade of all kinds of chewing gums.

The ban was in response to supposed vandalism with chewing gum on the city's new metro train service.

There is prohibition on importing, selling and spitting out gum in the country but it can be prescribed by a doctor for dental health or help quitting smoking.

In 2007, archaeology student Sarah Pickin discovered a lump of birch bark tar while on a dig in western Finland.

Neolithic people used the material as an antiseptic to treat gum infections.

Ms Pickin's tutor, Professor Trevor Brown told the BBC: "It's particularly significant because well-defined tooth imprints were found on the gum."

The ancient Greeks chewed mastic gum, called mastiche, for centuries.

It was formed from the resin contained in the bark of the mastic tree found mainly in Greece and Turkey.

Historians say Grecian women favoured chewing mastic gum to clean their teeth and sweeten their breath.

The tale of chewing gum taking seven years to pass through your system is seemingly apocryphal.

Doctors say the digestive process has almost no impact on an accidentally swallowed piece.

While your body is able to break down some of the components, such as sweeteners and oil derivatives, the gum's rubber or latex base stays intact.

Perhaps the country's most famous masticator, Sir Alex Ferguson was often seen on the sidelines of Old Trafford chewing away like his jaw depended on it.

Gum was so synonymous with his career that upon his retirement in 2011, a fan auctioned his supposedly last chewed piece for charity on eBay.

The saliva saturated souvenir sold for a remarkable £390,000.

The myth that chewing gum can help weight loss has been debunked, with a study suggesting it makes you more hungry.

According to the Eating Behaviours journal, instead of suppressing appetite chewing gum tends to induce people to eat more junk food instead of healthy alternatives.

According to research, Iran has the highest proportion of gum chewers.

More than 80% of the country regularly masticate and the Iranian gum market is said to be worth more than £124m

The UK lags far behind, with only 44% of us chewing gum on a regular basis.