Investigating weaning using dental microwear analysis: A review

This paper provides a theoretical review and a framework of methods for using dental microwear analysis on deciduous teeth to investigate weaning processes from archaeological remains, and provides an approach to assess changes in food consumption during weaning. We review the process of weaning, which can be informative of subsistence transitions, maternal labour, demographic factors including birth spacing and infant health, and highlight the relationships between weaning, immune status, and exposure to pathogens. Prior microwear research has largely focused on adults necessitating consideration of the methods concerning deciduous teeth. Microwear can be used to discern between the consistency and fracture properties of food as enamel is removed during mastication, and is influenced by how food is prepared (for example premasticated, raw, cooked). As such, microwear provides a direct way to explore the introduction of complementary foods during weaning. A conceptual model of the potential confounders of assessing microwear in deciduous teeth including tooth biology, bite force, and the development of oral mechanics is presented. These are pertinent to understanding infant feeding, which changes in tandem with physical development and the sequence of dental eruption. This is relevant to future research for the interpretation of the microwear signatures of infants compared with adults. Understanding weaning practices and early life diet is crucial to expand and develop what we know about cultural systems, population health, nutrition, and subsistence practices in the past.