Force and mobility in the ageing human tongue

Abstract

In senescence, voluntary muscles exhibit distinct age-related changes. Principally, this involves a decline in the force such muscles can exert, but also alterations in their macroscopic and microscopic anatomy. The striated muscles of the tongue appear to be an exception. In an investigation measuring maximum force and mobility it was found that in aged edentate denture wearers there was a significant increase in force compared with the young dentate, while post-mortem sections of aged human tongues showed a complete absence of the expected age-related changes. It is our hypothesis that increased tongue activity during mastication and the abundant blood supply of the tongue are responsible for maintenance of structure and function.