You never know when you need to chew gum in outer space

If you ask Dr Franziska Apprich where she's from, she says one day she hopes to be able to answer "from Earth". It's said in a smiley face-kind of way. But the Dubai-professor is evidently really into this space thing. She's been in the news this week for her collaboration with a colleague from New York University Abu Dhabi, special advisor NYUAD James Grogan, and they've created a chewing gum for interplanetary travellers that should hit the market end of 2017. "Yes, it will be in stores and online. Next week, I'm meeting the team from the ministry of food safety for their approval. We'll launch by the end of 2017," she told Khaleej Times.
Dr Franziska Apprich been in the UAE "for around six years now - long enough to get to know the UAE and to appreciate its vision and fast implementation of innovation". She was travelling between Germany and Africa when she spoke to Khaleej Times. "Africa is a great place to get away, to write on my research articles and reflect on the important things in life." Excerpts from a conversation.
Hi, Dr Apprich, this is fascinating! Could you talk a bit about what is space chewing gum?
Space Gum is the first gum designed for space. All ingredients are from the UAE and celebrate the UAE and its great vision. We have included natural gum base (great for dental hygiene, and chewing gum reduces anxiety), honey - great to enhance immune system and it never spoils... even the ancient Egyptians used it, date paste, syrup (to give a natural sugar boost and increase concentration), particles of silver (used to sterilise and enhance dental care) and vitamins to enhance the immune system and make it easy to consume vitamins in space.
So, are vitamins the main difference between space gum and regular gum? Is this chewing gum or bubble gum? Also, what flavours are we talking?
The natural gum base is more a chewing gum than bubble gum. Bubble gum often includes a lot of toxins and chemicals. I love chewing gum... but sometimes I get headaches from the toxins. When I researched gums, I noticed a lot of consumers struggling with the same problem. The flavour is very much UAE-inspired: dates, honey... both ingredients are very much related to the UAE and we should celebrate them. Also chewing gum trains face muscles, and a study shows that chewing gum makes us more 'friendly-looking'. Good for a space crew who live in each others pockets... and you never know... when we meet new civilisations in space, we had better look friendly and charming (smiles).
You're very into this! Could you tell us how you grew interested in space food and ET lives? How did it all begin?
Well, at the time I was Dean for the Communication, General Education and Health and Environment programme at CUD. We were finalising our food safety diploma accreditation. I visited the food safety ministry and discovered a new world. At the same time, I was researching exam anxiety and different methods of overcoming anxiety. The UAE announced its space plans and I wondered what it would be like to travel to space. When you watch movies about space, it is all about adventure. But I could imagine that it must be a very anxious and lonely experience (especially when you know that you only possess a one-way ticket). I was sure that I would feel very anxious. Chewing gum always helped me during my own exams. It reduced anxiety and would calm me down. At the same time I looked into space food. It is hard to eat in space. So easy solutions to enhance your health seemed necessary. That's how the idea was born... reduced anxiety, providing your body with a boost, nostalgic reference to the UAE, easy vitamin intake, dental care and also, you enjoy the ride.
You mention exam anxiety... where did you grow up? Tell us something about chewing gum when you were growing up.
I'm a mix - German, Italian, Swiss. Growing up in Germany, chewing gum was something special, something of the future. Our American exchange students would bring over different flavours and share with us. It was something between food and entertainment - undefinable - and we admired the white teeth of American Hollywood celebrities. It is a luxury good, it is a part of the American dream, about the dream of progression. After the war, many Germans were very confused. When American soldiers gave out free gum and silk tights, they created a bridge and somehow made peace with the general population. The UAE dream is innovation, progression and new horizons. I hope I can contribute to that in a small way.
And besides gum, what other space food are you working on? You spoke about some at the food event...
I'm working on an energy bar and space lunch box for kids to fight obesity. Obesity is a serious topic. We need to make our solutions more fun, more approachable rather than a boring diet. A space lunch box is what I pitched at the Gulf food event including a specific algae used by NASA that enhances your metabolism even without exercise (as you can do little exercise in space and muscles decline). Our lives have changed - kids play more video games than do sports. Rather than trying to turn back time, I'm trying to look at potential ideas and solutions for the future. I have incorporated gaming in my lectures and it proves to be very successful. If we want to be innovative, we need to go with the zeitgeist (spirit of the time) rather than being in denial.
I read that the gum prototype contains silver, and I can't imagine why anybody would put metal in gum...
Silver has been used for centuries, for sterilising for example, medical tools and equipment. I come from a long line of medical doctors... my grandpa, dad, brother and even my mum studied medicine... I grew up between medical talk, love and sterilisation. Being in space means your dentist is planets away from you... so you better take care of your teeth. Dental hygiene is essential in space but brushing your teeth is more difficult. Popping a chewing gum can solve that problem and release anxiety.
So, honey will do okay in space then? - as will dates? Were those added for a bit of UAE culture in the gum?
Yes, and they are very nutritious and boost the immune system. The idea is that people visit space and watch new universes unfold while tasting a piece of the UAE vision. A vision that everything is possible and that people from all over the world can live peacefully and happily together.
You come from a long line of docs. But did you ever want to be an astronaut?
I would have loved to (be an astronaut)but that would need a lot of gum to calm me down and I would need to bring my piano along! Chewing gum and composing music would calm me and make me look forward to the unknown. (I studied music and have won international song writing awards.... creativity is part of my nature, as important as food itself). When you write music, you need to think outside the box, you need to be honest with yourself and what you are writing about... the same method I applied to the space chewing gum... outside the box, what can be enhanced, what are the facts and how can you improve the experience...
Sounds like a lot of fun! Will we be able to buy the gum here? How much would it cost?
Yes, it will be made available at stores. It would cost more than the usual gum due to its ingredients *the exact price would be approximately Dh10 per 10 pieces. So triple of the normal chewing gum, but it will be great for your diet and celebrate the UAE. I would love to give some of the profit to UAE Space research. Space is the future. We all know that. Also chewing gum can help with obesity. When you chew gum you lower your appetite. People who want to stop smoking chew gum. It is a well known practice to keep yourself busy and away from cigarettes. Also, chewing gum has been used as a sort of peace maker between different nations... especially when people did not speak the same language... reach out, chew together, respect each other... hopefully the space gum could be used in a similar fashion.
Did you taste the prototype? What was it like?
Yes I have tasted the prototype. It tastes different to the gums on the market. It tastes like the UAE. Sweet and delicious. There are some natural gums on the market, but they include sugar rather than honey or dates in the gum. In future I would love to add coffee chewing gum. I associate the UAE with coffee too. It could increase your energy level and make you even more alert - essential when e.g. defects in space occur. There are endless opportunities... as endless as the universe itself... we need to see space as infinite potential... only then can we truly evolve in my opinion.
Just so I get this right, how is space gum different from the gum I can buy at a grocery store? Is it the silver in it? Or are there some gravity-defying properties? I mean, why can't I chew normal gum in space?
The gum on the market is mostly just for dental care or entertainment. Yes, there will be real silver in the gum... there is no such thing on the market yet. Yes, you can chew  normal gum in space...yet our space gum has far more benefits for your diet, dental care, anxiety, etc. It is extending the idea of gum. There has been gum in space...but just the normal gum on the market...not especially designed for space. Space puts huge strain on human bodies. Our space gum can support human bodies by its ingredients...
nivriti@khaleejtimes.com
Nivriti likes 'human interest' stories and has a thing for quirky, oddball stuff

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