Differing structural properties of foods affect the development of mandibular control and muscle coordination in infants and young children

Abstract

The development of chewing is an essential motor skill that is continually refined throughout early childhood. From a motor control perspective, the advancement of textures is dependent upon the fit between a child's oral anatomic and motor system and food properties. The purpose of this exploratory study is to identify age-related changes in chewing motor coordination and control and to determine if these changes are associated with the differing structural properties of solid foods, as well as to explore the role of explanatory variables such as the emergence of teeth and bite force. The masticatory muscle coordination (i.e., coupling of synergistic and antagonistic muscle pairs) and control (i.e., speed, displacement, chewing rate, duration, and number of chews) of fifty children were assessed cross-sectionally at five ages: 9-, 12-, 18-, 24-, and 36-months using electromyography (EMG) and 3D optical motion capture while children ate three foods that had differing structural properties. The results of this study found that children made gains in their chewing motor control (decreased duration of chewing sequences and lateral jaw displacement) and coordination (improved jaw muscle coupling) throughout this period. The structural differences in foods also affected chewing performance at all ages. These preliminary findings suggest that some solid textures are better adapted for immature mandibular control than others and that the development of chewing is a protracted process that may be impacted by the emergence of teeth and changes to bite force.

An anatomical study on locations of the mandibular foramen and the accessory mandibular foramen in the mandible and their clinical implication in a Thai population

“…They are in the third quartile similarly. Moreover, right and left superoinferior localization are at 53.27% and 52.43% respectively which are also at the third quartile [9]. In addition, Oguz and Bozkir [11] .84 mm and there are some statistically significant differences between left and right sides in AB-PB, MF-IB, MN-IB parameters which is differed from previous studies showed no statistically significant difference in these parameters.…”

Masticatory behavior for different solid foods in preschool children according to their oral state

“…This food related masticatory behavior was previously described in adults using food and nonfood samples of increasing hardness (Fontijn‐Tekamp, van der Bilt, Abbink, & Bosman, ; Jalabert‐Malbos et al, ; Shiau, Peng, & Hsu, ; Woda, Foster, et al, ). Moreover, studies performed on babies and infants suggested that the capacity to adapt to different foods may appear as soon as food diversification begins (Gisel, ; Simione et al, ; Wilson et al, ). However, the diversity in foods (semi‐liquid/solid…) and procedures used in mastication studies in children avoided comparisons and made it difficult to draw conclusions, especially because children may use different orofacial praxes to deal with the task at hand.…”

Newly developed mastication activity reduction procedure rapidly induces abnormal atrophic change of the mandibular condyle in young and elder experimental animal models

“…Sufficient mastication helps with the development of the brain, improves gustation and pronunciation, helps prevent obesity and dental caries, facilitates swallowing, and acts to regulate digestion [1,2]. These benefits of mastication are very important for the physical growth and development of children and adolescents [3,4]. On the other hand, recent studies have also demonstrated that mastication has an intrinsic relationship to dementia and cognitive function in the elderly [5,6].…”