Pain from orthodontic treatment affects most if not all orthodontic patients. Learning more about the nature and timing of pain will help clinicians give patients a more scientific, evidence-based informed consent. If chewing gum was found to reduce pain, then we would have validated a common clinical advice with scientific evidence. We will also have established a non-pharmacological option for pain reduction with orthodontic treatment. If chewing gum was not found to reduce pain (or was found to increase it), then we can advise our patients against using it and advise clinicians against recommending it.