Verification of The Usefulness of Salivary Secretion Measurement Associated with Food Perception—Targeting The Elderly and Young People—

Abstract

Objective: To determine whether the Oral Moisture Checker for Mucus^®, a device that measures dryness of the oral mucosa, is useful for measuring salivation associated with food perception.

Methods: Presence of a difference in mouth dryness after food stimulation using pudding and rice, which were each placed before the subject’s eyes and near his or her mouth, was examined using an oral moisture meter in 10 healthy men and women aged 65 years or older and 10 healthy men and women in their 20s. The data were then analyzed.

Results: There was a significant difference in the dryness of the mouth before and after food stimulation. Although there was no significant difference among the elderly, In the young subjects, a significant difference in mouth dryness was seen between before and after food stimulation when pudding was brought near the subject’s mouth and rice was placed in front of his or her eyes.

Conclusion: In view of the fact that the subjects did not smell the pudding unless it was brought near their mouth and smelled the rice the moment it was placed before their eyes, the results suggested that the smell of food affected salivation associated with food perception. Although no significant difference before and after food stimulation was seen for the elderly subjects, suggesting that the oral moisture meter may be a useful device for determining changes in salivation associated with food perception.