SKULL VIBRATION DURING CHEWING OF CRISPY FOOD

• Published in: Journal of texture studies Vol. 41; no. 6; pp. 774 - 788
• Main Authors: VAN DER BILT, ANDRIES, DE LIZ POCZTARUK, RAFAEL, ABBINK, JAN HENDRIK
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.12.2010; Wiley
• Subjects: Auditory; Biological and medical sciences; crispness; food; Food industries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; mastication; Methods of analysis, processing and quality control, regulation, standards; perception; texture
• ISSN: 0022-4901; 1745-4603
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-4603.2010.00254.x

When we chew crispy food, the jaw decelerates and accelerates as a result of resistance and breakage of food particles, and a characteristic sound of the breakage of the food particles is produced. Our aim was to investigate how physical responses, in the form of vibrations, change during chewing. This will give an impression of how food characteristics change during the chewing process. Force resistance and sound emission of three crispy foods (biscuits) and one noncrispy food (cake) were determined with a texture analyzer. We measured skull vibration, while the subjects chewed and swallowed the foods. Clear skull vibrations were observed while the subjects started to chew the biscuits. The skull vibrations gradually decreased upon further chewing down to the level of skull vibrations produced by chewing on noncrispy cake. Then, the biscuits were chewed long enough to form a well-moistened food bolus that was ready for swallowing. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The crispy nature of food products is an important sensory characteristic on which consumers base their appreciation. Rheological measurements have often turned out not to be completely satisfactory in explaining the relationship between food structure and texture perception. This could be explained by the notion that this approach disregards the oral processing and physiology of the mouth. The measurement of skull vibration, produced by the breakage of crispy food during chewing, provides information on how food characteristics gradually change during chewing. This information may help to understand the relationship between food structure and texture perception.