Muscles for Chewing

The Mastication Muscles Involved in Chewing are:

1. Buccinator: a thin muscle in the cheek that holds the cheek toward the teeth. It also aids in chewing by keeping food between the teeth[4].
2. Lateral pterygoid: helping to open the jaw. It’s also involved in protruding and moving the jaw side to side[2].
3. Masseter: running from the cheek to the jaw and helping to close the jaw. It’s one of the main muscles for elevating the mandible[1][2].
4. Medial pterygoid: helping to close the jaw. It also assists in elevating and protracting the mandible[1][2].
5. Temporalis: a fan-shaped muscle that helps close the jaw. It’s also involved in elevating and retracting the mandible[1][2].

Things to note:

• The masseter, temporalis, lateral pterygoid, and medial pterygoid are considered the four main muscles of mastication[1][2][5].
• The buccinator, while involved in chewing, is often classified as an accessory muscle of mastication[1][5].
• Other accessory muscles involved in chewing include the suprahyoid muscles (digastric, mylohyoid, and geniohyoid) and infrahyoid muscles[1][5].

Citations:
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK541027/
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscles_of_mastication
[3] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/veterinary-science-and-veterinary-medicine/muscles-of-mastication
[4] https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/21672-facial-muscles
[5] https://www.physio-pedia.com/Muscles_of_Mastication