Oral Function and Nutrition Across the Lifespan

Oral function is a key determinant of what and how people eat across the life course. Reduced chewing ability, impaired masticatory performance, tooth loss, oral discomfort, and perceived difficulty chewing can alter food selection and nutrient intake, with consequences for body weight, metabolic health, physical function, and quality of life. In aging societies, these relationships are particularly important because nutritional vulnerability often emerges through the interaction of oral impairment, chronic disease risk, low muscle reserve, and social or behavioral factors. However, evidence remains fragmented across dentistry, nutrition, gerontology, epidemiology, and digital health, and many studies focus on only one part of this pathway. Large-scale population datasets, cohort studies in older adults, and app-based nutrition guidance now provide opportunities to examine these issues more comprehensively, from body mass index–related heterogeneity to frailty and lifestyle-related disease outcomes. This Research Topic will bring together these complementary perspectives to advance an integrated understanding of oral function, nutrition, and healthy aging. This Research Topic brings together these complementary perspectives to advance an integrated understanding of oral function, nutrition, and healthy aging.This Research Topic aims to clarify how oral function assessment, dietary intake, and nutritional status interact across adulthood and older age, and how these relationships can inform prevention strategies for frailty, sarcopenia, metabolic risk, and other health outcomes. The collection seeks contributions from observational epidemiology, cohort analyses, methodological studies, and digital or community-based interventions. Particular emphasis is placed on studies that examine heterogeneity in these associations, such as differences by BMI, age group, or assessment method, and on work that connects oral health evaluation with feasible nutritional guidance approaches. By integrating dental, nutritional, public health, and digital-health perspectives, the topic will support more precise and actionable approaches to healthy aging.Submissions are invited on the relationships among oral function, dietary intake, nutritional status, and health outcomes in adults and older adults. Original research, systematic or scoping reviews, brief reports, methodological studies, and intervention papers are welcome. Relevant themes include, but are not limited to:● Epidemiological studies of chewing status, masticatory performance, dentition, or oral hypofunction in relation to nutrient intake, dietary patterns, BMI, or metabolic indicators.● Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies evaluating whether associations between oral function and nutrient intake differ by BMI category, age group, sex, or health status.● Studies combining subjective and objective assessments of chewing or oral function to improve identification of nutritionally vulnerable older adults.● Research linking oral function and dietary intake with frailty, sarcopenia, physical performance, cognitive outcomes, or lifestyle-related disease factors.● Validation and application of assessment methods for oral function, diet quality, nutrient intake, and nutrition-related risk stratification.● Digital health and app-based nutrition guidance studies that use dietary monitoring, personalized feedback, or behavioral support to improve nutrition in people with impaired oral function or elevated age-related risk.●Community-based, implementation, or policy-oriented studies integrating oral health and nutritional support for healthy aging. Topic editors: Yoko Hasegawa, Sayaka Nagao-Sato Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83550/oral-function-and-nutrition-across-the-lifespan