Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Normally noningestible chewable material or process of... – Packaged – structurally defined – or coated
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-30
2002-09-03
Corbin, Arthur L. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Normally noningestible chewable material or process of...
Packaged, structurally defined, or coated
C424S048000, C424S440000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06444241
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to methods for producing chewing gum. More particularly the invention relates to producing chewing gum containing a high amount of stimulant known as caffeine. The caffeine that is added to the chewing gum has been treated to control its rate of release in chewing gum.
In recent years, efforts have been devoted to controlling release characteristics of various ingredients in chewing gum. Most notably, attempts have been made to delay the release of sweeteners and flavors in various chewing gum formulations to thereby lengthen the satisfactory chewing time of the gum. Delaying the release of sweeteners and flavors can also avoid an undesirable overpowering burst of sweetness or flavor during the initial chewing period. On the other hand, some ingredients have been treated so as to increase their rate of release in chewing gum.
Besides sweeteners, other ingredients may require a controlled release from chewing gum. Stimulants such as caffeine may be added to gum; however, stimulants are not generally released very readily. Caffeine may be encapsulated in a water soluble matrix such that, during the chewing period, the caffeine may be released quickly resulting in a fast release of stimulant as in a beverage. This would allow chewing gum to be a carrier for caffeine and, with its fast release, to be an effective stimulant.
On the other hand, serious taste problems may arise because of the bitter nature of caffeine. Thus, a prolonged or delayed release of caffeine would allow for the use of caffeine in gum, but the low level of release may keep the level below its taste threshold and not give chewing gum a bitter taste quality. Also, slow release may allow some individuals to more easily tolerate caffeine and not cause gastrointestinal distress.
Thus, there are specific advantages to adding caffeine to chewing gum by controlled release mechanisms.
Caffeine use in chewing gum was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,298,670.
Chewing gum containing caffeine as a stimulant and to combat fatigue and migraine headaches is disclosed in French Patent No. 2,345,938 and in West Germany Patent No. 4,342,568.
Also, two Japanese Patent Publications, Nos. JP 91-112450 and JP 91-251533, disclose use of caffeine in chewing gum to reduce drowsiness.
In Japanese Patent Publication No. JP 96-019370, caffeine is added to chewing gum as an after-meal chewing gum to replace tooth brushing.
Caffeine is a well known stimulant from coffee and tea, and several patents disclose use of coffee or tea in gum, such as Japanese Patent Publication No. JP 94-303911, South Korea Patent Publication No. 94-002868, and PCT Patent Publication No. WO 95-000038.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a method of producing chewing gum with physically modified caffeine to control its release. The present invention also relates to the chewing gum so produced. Caffeine may be added to sucrose type gum formulations, replacing a small quantity of sucrose. The formulation may be a low or high moisture formulation containing low or high amounts of moisture containing syrup. Caffeine may also be used in low or non-sugar gum formulations, replacing a small quantity of sorbitol, mannitol, other polyols or carbohydrates. Non-sugar formulations may include low or high moisture sugar free chewing gums.
Caffeine may be combined or codried with bulk sweeteners typically used in chewing gum, such as sucrose, dextrose, fructose and maltodextrins, as well as sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol, lactitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose and hydrogenated starch hydrolyzates.
The modified release rate noted above may be a fast release or a delayed release. The modified release of caffeine is obtained by encapsulation, partial encapsulation or partial coating, entrapment or absorption with high or low water soluble materials or water insoluble materials. The procedures for modifying the caffeine include spray drying, spray chilling, fluid bed coating, coacervation, extrusion and other agglomerating and standard encapsulating techniques. Caffeine may also be absorbed onto an inert or water-insoluble material. Caffeine may be modified in a multiple step process comprising any of the processes, or a combination of the processes noted. Prior to encapsulation, caffeine may also be combined with bulk sweeteners including sucrose, dextrose, fructose, maltodextrin or other bulk sweeteners, as well as sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol, lactitol, hydrogenated isomaltulose and hydrogenated starch hydrolyzates.
Prior to encapsulation, caffeine may be combined with high-intensity sweeteners, including but not limited to thaumatin, aspartame, alitame, acesulfame K, saccharin acid and its salts, glycyrrhizin, cyclamate and its salts, stevioside and dihydrochalcones. Co-encapsulation of caffeine along with a high-intensity sweetener may reduce the bitterness of caffeine and control the sweetener release with caffeine. This can improve the quality of the gum product and increase consumer acceptability.
In addition to use of high-intensity sweeteners, bitterness inhibitors such as sodium gluconate, sodium ascorbate or other sodium salts may be combined with caffeine prior to encapsulation to reduce the overall bitterness caused by caffeine and result in a gum product having increased consumer acceptability.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Caffeine is a natural chemical found in a variety of food products such as coffee, tea, cocoa, chocolate, and various other beverages. Caffeine is known as an effective stimulant to increase energy and reduce drowsiness. Caffeine has a naturally bitter taste. The bitterness, however, actually improves the flavor perception of some beverages such as coffee and carbonated beverages.
When caffeine is added to chewing gum at a level of about 0.2% to about 5%, caffeine imparts an intense bitterness to the chewing gum that lasts throughout the chewing period. The higher the level used, the stronger the bitterness. At about 0.2%, which is about 5 mg per 2.7 gram stick, the bitterness is below the threshold limit and is not readily discernible. Taste limits in chewing gum are generally about 0.4% (10 mg) to about 4% (100 mg) of caffeine in a stick of gum. The 60-80 mg level of caffeine is about the level of caffeine found in a conventional cup of coffee. The target level of caffeine in stick gum is about 40 mg per stick, with a range of about 25-60 mg, so that a five stick package of gum would contain about 200 mg of caffeine, or the equivalent of caffeine in two strong cups of coffee. However, at this level caffeine bitterness overwhelms the flavor initially and lasts throughout the chewing period.
With the caffeine release modified to result in a fast release of caffeine with the chewing gum solubles and sweeteners, the bitterness can be effectively reduced. If high-intensity sweeteners can be blended with caffeine to release at the same time, this too can reduce the bitterness effect. Other chemicals that inhibit bitterness may be blended with caffeine to also reduce bitterness.
Caffeine is not a highly water soluble substance and, therefore, has a moderately slow release from chewing gum. Caffeine is 2.1% soluble in water at room temperature, 15% soluble in water at 80° C. and 40% soluble in boiling water. This gives caffeine a moderately slow release as shown below:
Chewing Time
% Caffeine Release
0 min
—
5 min
56
10 min
73
20 min
88
40 min
97
Generally, highly water soluble ingredients are about 80-90% released after only five minutes of chewing. For caffeine, only about 50% is released, while the other 50% remains in the gum after five minutes of chewing. After 20 minutes almost 90% of caffeine is released.
Even if caffeine is dissolved in hot water and mixed in the gum, when the gum is cooled or kept at room temperature, caffeine may return to its normal crystalline state and release at the same rate as shown above.
Caffeine salt compounds such as caffeine citrate, caffeine sodium benzoate,
Corriveau Christine L.
Johnson Sonya S.
Ream Ronald L.
Russell Michael P.
Tyrpin Henry T.
Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione
Corbin Arthur L.
Shurtz Steven P.
Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company
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