Silvester, CM;
Kullmer, O;
Hillson, S;
(2021)
A dental revolution: The association between occlusion and chewing behaviour.
PLoS One
, 16
(12)
, Article e0261404. 10.1371/journal.pone.0261404.
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Abstract
Dentistry is confronted with the functional and aesthetic consequences that result from an increased prevalence of misaligned and discrepant dental occlusal relations in modern industrialised societies. Previous studies have indicated that a reduction in jaw size in response to softer and more heavily processed foods during and following the Industrial Revolution (1,700 CE to present) was an important factor in increased levels of poor dental occlusion. The functional demands placed on the masticatory system play a crucial role in jaw ontogenetic development; however, the way in which chewing behaviours changed in response to the consumption of softer foods during this period remains poorly understood. Here we show that eating more heavily processed food has radically transformed occlusal power stroke kinematics. Results of virtual 3D analysis of the dental macrowear patterns of molars in 104 individuals dating to the Industrial Revolution (1,700–1,900 CE), and 130 of their medieval and early post-medieval antecedents (1,100–1,700 CE) revealed changes in masticatory behaviour that occurred during the early stages of the transition towards eating more heavily processed foods. The industrial-era groups examined chewed with a reduced transverse component of jaw movement. These results show a diminished sequence of occlusal contacts indicating that a dental revolution has taken place in modern times, involving a dramatic shift in the way in which teeth occlude and wear during mastication. Molar macrowear suggests a close connection between progressive changes in chewing since the industrialization of food production and an increase in the prevalence of poor dental occlusion in modern societies.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | A dental revolution: The association between occlusion and chewing behaviour. |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0261404 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261404 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2021 Silvester et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10140785 |
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