Relationship between masticatory performance using a gummy jelly and food intake ability in Japanese complete denture wearers.

Twenty patients wearing complete dentures were asked to chew a gummy jelly, and their glucose extraction was measured. Two types of masticatory scores (MS1 and MS2) were calculated using a food intake questionnaire. The relationship between masticatory scores and glucose extraction was investigated. The values of masticatory scores were large when the amount of glucose extraction was also large, and there were significantly positive correlations between the two. There was also a positive correlation between MS1 and MS2. It was suggested that the food intake ability was high when the masticatory performance using a gummy jelly was high.