[For Seniors] Oral Exercises to Keep Eating Deliciously and Enjoyably

Raw catfish, raw sea cucumber, raw nameko mushrooms

By consciously paying close attention to how you move your tongue and lips, you can manage to pronounce words used in daily life in some way.

This phrase is a tongue twister where the movements of the tongue and lips are particularly important.

The word “nama” is the key: the “na,” which requires firm tongue movement, and the “ma,” pronounced by opening and closing the lips, occur in succession, directing your awareness to your mouth’s motion.

Pronouncing words that actively engage the mouth can also help stimulate saliva production, making this tongue twister recommended from multiple perspectives.

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Raw wheat, raw rice, raw eggs

It’s a classic tongue twister—practically the gold standard that everyone’s tried.

In this phrase, pay particular attention to the mouth shape and tongue movement for the “nima” parts.

Start by pronouncing each character slowly and one by one; once you grasp how your tongue moves, your speech should become smoother.

For “na,” tongue movement is key; for “ma,” the opening and closing of the lips are important.

If you pronounce them clearly, it can even help stimulate saliva production.

Focusing on speed helps with smooth delivery, while focusing on mouth movements strengthens the surrounding muscles, so it’s highly recommended.

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Parent turtle, child turtle, grandchild turtle

One of the classic tongue twisters that add “parent,” “child,” and “grandchild” to animals helps you consciously focus on differences in mouth shapes.

The phrase is relatively easy to pronounce, so be mindful of your mouth shape and movements as you gradually increase speed.

There’s also a version that adds “parent duck, duckling, grand-duck,” which draws attention to the difference in mouth shape between the sounds ‘me’ and ‘mo.’ Precisely because the phrase is simple, not only mouth movements but also the rhythm of pronunciation is important.

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Red pajamas, blue pajamas, yellow pajamas.

Arranging red, blue, and yellow at the start of words is also a classic pattern in tongue twisters.

“Aka” (red) and “ao” (blue) are sounds that require opening the mouth wide, so if you attach them to phrases with fine movements, the difficulty of the tongue twister increases.

Sounds like “pa” and “ma” are hard to pronounce without first closing the lips, so be mindful of that.

By carefully pronouncing each sound one by one at first, you’ll understand how to move your lips.

If you move your mouth deliberately and gradually increase your speed, your mouth movements will become smoother and you’ll likely strengthen those muscles as well.

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The customer next door is a customer who often eats persimmons.

It’s one of the classic tongue twisters in Japan, and it evokes a rakugo-like world.

The key here is probably the pronunciation of “kyaku” and “kaki.” If you try pronouncing it syllable by syllable, you’ll realize that not only the movements of the lips and tongue matter, but the opening and closing of the teeth as well.

Another point to focus on is how you use your breath while moving your lips and teeth during pronunciation.

Overall, it’s a phrase that really engages the muscles around the mouth, making it a perfect tongue twister for training.

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A-I-U-Be Exercise Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Five mouth exercises to extend healthy life expectancy — full version, all at once

Many care facilities have residents do oral exercises before meals.

The goals of these exercises include preventing aspiration, reducing food spillage, and improving eating and articulation.

This time, we’d like to introduce an oral exercise set to the melody of the children’s song “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” Using familiar songs—like children’s songs that many older adults know—makes it easier to participate.

By changing the lyrics to “aiuebe” and vocalizing them, you can expect to strengthen the tongue and the muscles around the mouth.

Since it also trains the facial expression muscles, conversations with richer expressions may become smoother.

It’s an exercise that also supports communication, so please give it a try.

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A-I-U-Be Classic Exercise

[Recommended for Autumn and Winter: Mouth Exercises] A-I-U-Be Exercises × Classical — Gymnopédie Chill MIX ♪ Infection Prevention Measures / Exercises for Older Adults

Let’s add a touch of classical music to the “AIUEBE” mouth exercise used to help prevent colds and influenza.

You can use a slow, gentle melody like Gymnopédies, or a classical piece that older adults enjoy.

Doing the exercise to one’s favorite classical music makes it more enjoyable for seniors, too.

Move your mouth widely to the melody—“a, i, u, be”—and stick your tongue out and lower it.

This exercise is especially recommended in dry seasons like autumn and winter.

Give it a try!

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