Advances in Food Oral Processing: Mechanisms of Bolus Formation, Multidimensional Evaluation, and Applications Across Food Categories

Abstract

Oral processing plays a central role in food texture perception, bolus formation, and swallowing safety, thereby influencing consumer acceptance and nutritional outcomes. This review summarizes recent advances in food oral processing, focusing on the mechanisms of bolus formation, multidimensional evaluation approaches, and applications across diverse food categories. The mechanisms underlying bolus formation are discussed with emphasis on the interactions among food composition, structure, masticatory dynamics, and saliva. Major evaluation methods, including sensory evaluation, physicochemical characterization, and dynamic biomimetic simulation, are systematically reviewed. These approaches enable the analysis of temporal sensory perception, structural transformation, flavor release, and