Abstract
In the older population, denture condition and oral discomfort or pains were considered to relate closely to chewing ability. The attitude towards diet including dietary habits might bealso affected by chewing ability.
The present survey was conducted to elucidate the interrelationships between chewing ability, oral condition and dietary attitudes.
The subjects were residents over 60 years old living in private facilities for the elderly.
The results obtained were the following:
1) Chewing ability was evaluated by the test jelly method. The subjects were categorized into 3 groups (I, II, III) according to the highest level of their chewing ability.
2) There was a close correlation between chewing ability and the number of remaining teeth.(p<0.001)
3) In group I and II, over 80% identified the improvement in their chewing ability as denturewear, against only 44.4% in group III. Instead of masticatory benefit from dentures, some of group III mentioned an improvement in speech (11.1%) or appearance (11.1%).
4) Group III had more oral discomfort or pain than groups I and II.
5) Group III had a higher intake of bread, meat especially processed, oils and fats, and foods between meals than group I and II.
6) As for the concerns about diet, most of group I (75.6%) selected the category of what theyeat, while about half of group II (46.2%) and III (50.0%) selected that of with whom they eat.
