Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Product with added plural inorganic mineral or element...
Reexamination Certificate
1998-07-30
2001-06-05
Nessler, Cynthia L. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Product with added plural inorganic mineral or element...
C426S097000, C426S099000, C426S660000, C424S440000, C424S476000, C424S498000, C424S502000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06242019
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention concerns the use of fats to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of functional ingredients in hard confectionery compositions. More specifically it concerns the use of saturated fats or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of botanicals in hard boiled candy or hard gum compositions. It further concerns the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of minerals and their salts in hard boiled candy compositions.
2. Background of the Invention
Functional ingredients, also known as nutraceuticals, are those food ingredients which generally provide therapeutic benefits when consumed in the diet. A drawback with the use of functional ingredients such as the botanicals, minerals and mineral salts, is their unpleasant mouthfeel when orally ingested, usually an unpleasant tingling sensation or astringency.
The art teaches methods for masking the unpleasant mouthfeel of the mineral zinc. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,425,325, 4,758,439, 4,684,528, 4,339,432 and 4,416,867 all teach reduction of the astringency of zinc in oral compositions by addition of glycine or other select amino acids. EP 0,251,542 uses polyoxyethylene hydrogenated castor oil (polymerized castor oil) to mask zinc and U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,970 uses anethole. U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,944 teaches reduction of astringency of zinc by dissolving zinc salt in an aqueous polyphosphate solution. U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,035 uses a sweet pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. U.S. Pat. No. 5,059,416 teaches coating zinc with a hydrophillic layer followed by a hydrophobic layer selected from fats and waxes. The resultant product is a powder or granulate.
The coating of pharmaceuticals in general with hydrophobic materials, especially lipids, with or without other materials to mask unpleasant mouthfeel, is taught in the art. These systems are generally directed toward providing coated particles of the pharmaceutical which can then be used in quick delivery formulations such as liquid suspensions, quick dissolve tablets, capsules, syrups and the like. The coatings prevent release of the pharmaceutical until it has passed from the oral cavity into the gut. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,498,447, 4,865, 851, 5,635,200, 4,953,247, 5,597,844, 5,320,848 and 5,494,681, Japanese Patents 7242568 and 08333243, and WO Patent Publications 94/05260, 96/10993 and 97/03656 all concern these methods of masking mouthfeel and/or providing stability until the pharmaceutical reaches the gut.
Although functional ingredients have been provided in various delivery forms by those skilled in the dietary supplement and food arts, the prior art delivery forms have not satisfactorily met the consumer need to be both efficacious and have an acceptable taste for oral ingestion, particularly when delivered to the oral cavity. It would be desirable to provide the consumer with a food product, particularly with a hard confectionery product, containing functional ingredients wherein the unpleasant mouthfeel of the functional ingredient has been substantially reduced. It would be desirable to provide the consumer with a hard confectionery product which is both efficacious and have an acceptable taste.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns a hard boiled candy composition comprising a confectionery base, a botanical or mineral or mineral salt having an unpleasant mouthfeel, and from about 0.5% to about 5.0% by weight of the composition of one or more partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, said amount being effective to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of the functional ingredient. The invention further concerns a hard boiled candy composition comprising a confectionery base, a botanical having an unpleasant mouthfeel, and from about 0.5% to about 5.0% by weight of the composition of one or more saturated fats, said amount being effective to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of the botanical. The invention still further concerns a hard gum composition comprising a confectionery base, a botanical having an unpleasant mouthfeel, and from about 0.5% to about 5.0% by weight of the composition of one or more partially hydrogenated vegetable oils or saturated fats, said amount being effective to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of said botanical.
As a result of the present invention, improved hard confectionery products are provided which have a substantial reduction in the unpleasant organoleptic sensations associated with the functional ingredients upon release of the functional ingredient from the confection in the oral cavity.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns the use of fats to suppress the unpleasant mouthfeel of functional ingredients, also referred to herein as nutraceuticals, in confectionery products. By “functional ingredient” or “nutraceutical” is meant a material that offers the consumer some degree of nutritional or therapeutic benefit when consumed in the diet.
Nutraceuticals having an unpleasant mouthfeel include botanicals, minerals and mineral salts. By “botanical” is meant a substance derived from plant source, that is, from roots, leaves, bark or berries of plants, and used in the human diet. Botanicals include, but are not limited to, Echinacea, Siberian Ginseng, Ginko Biloba, Kola Nut, Goldenseal, Golo Kola, Schizandra, Elderberry, St. Johns Wort, Valerian and Ephedra. Echinacea is a preferred botanical for the practice of the present invention.
By “mineral” is meant inorganic substances, metals and the like used in the human diet. Minerals include, but are not limited to, zinc, calcium, iron and selenium. “Mineral salts” is meant to include the organic and inorganic salts of these minerals and include, but are not limited to, the gluconate, acetate, ascorbate, glycinate, citrate, chloride and sulfate. Zinc, or a zinc salt, is a preferred mineral for the practice of the present invention.
The amount of botanical, mineral or mineral salt used in the present invention may vary depending upon recommendations derived from the available scientific literature, and/or the recommended or permitted dosage for the particular agent in accordance with the guidelines of, for example, the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 and the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, and the Food and Drug regulations implementing the Acts. The amount of functional ingredient present will also be governed by the constraints of the confectionery product formulation. In the practice of the present invention the hard confectionery product may contain up to 5% by weight of the botanical, mineral, or mineral salt.
The “fats” utilized by the present invention are partially hydrogenated vegetable oils and saturated fats. Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils include but are not limited to partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil, soybean oil, peanut oil, palm oil, sunflower seed oil and corn oil. The saturated fats include but are not limited to, palm kernel oil, coconut oil, cocoa butter, butter, and commercially available blends such as PARAMOUNT C (trademark of Durkee Industrial Foods).
The unpleasant mouthfeel effects typically found with botanicals, minerals and mineral salts include tingling, burning, drying, and astringency. These mouthfeel effects will generally be noted immediately upon consumption for minerals or mineral salts which have a quick mouthfeel impact. The unpleasant mouthfeel effects of botanicals, by comparison, will develop more slowly. All of these mouthfeel effects are generally found to be unpleasant and make the hard confectionery product in which they are incorporated less appealing. It has now surprisingly been found that when one or more partially hydrogenated vegetable oils of the present invention is added into the hard confectionery composition containing a botanical, mineral or a mineral salt, the unpleasant mouthfeel effects are suppressed providing a product which is more acceptable to the consumer palate. It has further been found that when one or more saturated fats of the present
Bell Anthony John
Deisseroth Wendy
Jordan Jean-Marie
Nessler Cynthia L.
Vag Linda A.
Warner-Lambert & Company
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