Drug – bio-affecting and body treating compositions – Preparations characterized by special physical form – Wearing apparel – fabric – or cloth
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-22
2001-09-25
Page, Thurman K. (Department: 1615)
Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
Preparations characterized by special physical form
Wearing apparel, fabric, or cloth
C424S400000, C424S401000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06294182
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns single use towelettes for cosmetically controlling facial fine lines and wrinkles.
2. The Related Art
Forever young. Adults as they age seek to preserve the indicia of youth. Through the ages cosmetics have proved valuable for retarding the signs of the aging process. Facial foundations, creams and lotions have all helped in the coverup. Yet few really effective actives are available in the cosmetic chemist's arsenal. One of the few effective actives are a class of materials known as alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acids.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,091,171 (Yu et al.) was one of the first documents describing the use of alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acids as being effective against the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Subsequent thereto a vast literature and many commercial products were generated based on the efficacy of these materials. Most often the formulations were of the cream or lotion type. One problem with these formulations is that they do not always evenly distribute over the applied surfaces. Secondly, any time an active treated surface is followed by a cleansing, the active washes away. Methods to maintain alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acids on a skin surface are needed which are not as susceptible to subsequent cleansing actions. Irritation has also been of great concern because the formulations are generally of low pH.
WO 96/11572 (Moberg) has utilized a variety of acids including the alpha-hydroxy substance known as lactic acid in an aqueous hexylene glycol formula impregnated onto textiles or refreshing napkins. These were employed to overcome the problem of microbial growth on skin and served as a disinfection treatment.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a product and method for both cleansing skin and reducing the signs of aging including controlling formation of fine lines and wrinkles.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a product and method in which actives that control fine lines and wrinkles maintain their presence on the skin even after a cleansing treatment.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a product and method for controlling the signs of aging, especially those of fine lines and wrinkles while minimizing irritation often associated with such actives.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more apparent from the following summary and detailed discussion which follow.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A disposable towelette product is provided for cleansing and managing signs of aging on the skin, the product including:
(a) a container housing a towelette which includes:
(i) a substrate;
(ii) an alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid; and
(iii) a cosmetically acceptable vehicle for impregnating the alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid as a composition onto the substrate;
(b) written instructions on the package on use of the towelette against the skin to achieve a reduction in the signs of aging.
A method is also provided for cleansing and managing the signs of aging on skin, the method including:
(a) providing a towelette which is constituted of:
(i) a substrate;
(ii) an alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid;
(iii) a cosmetically acceptable vehicle for impregnating the alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid as a composition onto the substrate; and
(b) wiping the surface of the skin with the towelette.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Now it has been found that towelettes impregnated with alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acids allow for a combined cleansing and anti-aging treatment of the skin. Since cleansing with a towelette requires no wash-off step, the alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid can deposit in amounts and remain deposited just as if the active were delivered via a cream or lotion. The uniformly impregnated towelettes distribute the active on the skin in a much more even manner than cream, lotion, gel or stick products.
A first necessary aspect of the present invention is that of a substrate. Preferably the substrate is a water insoluble substance. By “water insoluble” is meant the substrate does not dissolve in or readily break apart upon immersion in water. Another advantage of the substrate in combination with the active is that the former helps the active penetrate. The substrate is also much better than a mere liquid or gel formulation in the accurate application to the skin and avoidance of sensitive areas such as inadvertently directing the astringent composition to areas of the eye thereby irritating same.
A wide variety of materials can be used as the substrate. The following nonlimiting characteristics are desirable: (I) sufficient wet strength for use, (ii) sufficient abrasivity, (iii) sufficient loft and porosity, (iv) sufficient thickness, (v) appropriate size, and (vi) non-reactive with components of the impregnating composition.
Nonlimiting examples of suitable substrates which meet the above criteria include nonwoven substrates, woven substrates, hydroentangled substrates, air entangled substrates and the like. Preferred embodiments employ nonwoven substrates since they are economical and readily available in a variety of materials. By nonwoven is meant that the layer is comprised of fibers which are not woven into a fabric but rather are formed into a sheet, particularly a tissue. The fibers can either be random (i.e., randomly aligned) or they can be carded (i.e. combed to be oriented in primarily one direction). Furthermore, the nonwoven substrate can be composed of a combination of layers of random and carded fibers.
Nonwoven substrates may be comprised of a variety of materials both natural and synthetic. By natural is meant that the materials are derived from plants, animals, insects or byproducts. By synthetic is meant that the materials are obtained primarily from various man-made materials or from material that is usually a fibrous web comprising any of the common synthetic or natural textile-length fibers, or mixtures thereof.
Nonlimiting examples of natural materials useful in the present invention are silk fibers, keratin fibers and cellulosic fibers. Nonlimiting examples of keratin fibers include those selected from the group consisting of wool fibers, camel hair fibers, and the like. Nonlimiting examples of cellulosic fibers include those selected from the group consisting of wood pulp fibers, cotton fibers, hemp fibers, jute fibers, flax fibers, and mixtures thereof. Wood pulp fibers are preferred while all cotton fibers (e.g. cotton pads) are normally avoided.
Nonlimiting examples of synthetic materials useful in the present invention include those selected from the group consisting of acetate fibers, acrylic fibers, cellulose ester fibers, modacrylic fibers, polyamide fibers, polyester fibers, polyolefin fibers, polyvinyl alcohol fibers, rayon fibers and mixtures thereof. Examples of some of these synthetic materials include acrylics such as Acrilan®, Creslan®, and the acrylonitrile-based fiber, Orion®; cellulose ester fibers such as cellulose acetate, Arnel®, and Acele®; polyamides such as Nylons (e.g., Nylon 6, Nylon 66, Nylon 610 and the like); polyesters such as Fortrel®, Kodel®, and the polyethylene terephthalate fibers, Dacron®; polyolefins such as polypropylene, polyethylene; polyvinyl acetate fibers and mixtures thereof.
Nonwoven substrates made from natural materials consist of webs or sheets most commonly formed on a fine wire screen from a liquid suspension of the fibers.
Substrates made from natural materials useful in the present invention can be obtained from a wide variety of commercial sources. Nonlimiting examples of suitable commercially available paper layers useful herein include Airtex®, an embossed airlaid cellulosic layer having a base weight of about 71 gsy, available from James River Corporation, Green Bay, Wis.; and Walkisoft®, an embossed airlaid cellulosic having a base weight of about 75 gsy, available from Walkisoft U.S.A., Mount Holly, N.C.
Nonwoven substrates made from synthetic materials useful in the present invention can also be obtained from a wide variety of commercial sou
Gott Robert Edward
Slavtcheff Craig Stephen
Znaiden Alexander Paul
Honig Milton L.
Howard S.
Page Thurman K.
Unilever Home & Personal Care USA , division of Conopco, Inc.
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