抄録
The objective of this study was to analyze human eating behaviors in chewing and slurping buckwheat noodles. We used electromyography to measure the activity of the jaw-closing, jaw-opening, and lip-closing muscles while healthy adults ate one mouthful of buckwheat noodles. Slurping the noodles required a longer mastication period but smaller muscle activity per movement than chewing the same samples. Total muscle activity was greater in slurping. Slurping also showed a longer average cycle time but greater variances in the cycle time than rhythmical chewing. The mechanical properties of buckwheat noodles significantly differed between the noodle types (half-raw and dry), but the human mastication variables for the two types of noodles were not significantly changed within a subject. Both types of noodles kept for 10 min at 23 °C after being cooked could be consumed with less mastication effort than those immediately served, and this observation corresponded to softening of the noodles during the standing time.
