Stain removing chewing gum and confectionery compositions, and methods of making and usage

Stain removing chewing gum and candy composition and its manufacturing and using method

Related Application This application claims the priority of U.S. Patent Application No. 09/741,523 filed on December 20, 2000, which claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/188,554 filed on March 10, 2000 Right benefit.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention generally relates to chewing gum and candy compositions containing an effective amount of stain removal components selected from anionic or nonionic surfactants, and to the preparation of the composition in a manner that facilitates the release of stain removal components Methods.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Tooth whitening or stain removing components are known to be added to dentifrice compositions such as toothpaste, mouthwashes and the like. Such compositions include dicalcium phosphate, peroxide, percarbonate, etc., as disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,256,402 and 5,824,291.

It is known to use surfactants including nonionic surfactants in laundry detergent compositions. For example, such surfactants are disclosed in International Publication Nos. WO 92/06160 and No. WO 95/33034. It is known to use non-ionic surfactants in laundry detergent compositions to increase the effectiveness of such compositions in removing lipid/oil stains.

US Patent No. 5,645,821 discloses an oral hygiene composition for cleaning and whitening teeth, which includes water, a gelling agent, an anionic surfactant, and a mixture of alkaline earth metal hydroxides and carbonates. WO 88/00463 discloses an oral composition for removing and/or preventing dental plaque and removing stains, which includes an oil-compatible surfactant and at least one percent by weight of benzoate. It is also said that the composition contains a biocide, such as chlorhexidine or its derivatives. An exemplary surfactant is sodium lauryl sulfate, and the composition is said to contain plasticizers, including polyethylene glycol, glycerin, and the like. The document claims that the composition can be used in the form of dentifrice, lozenge or chewing gum.

Documents that disclose other chewing gum compositions and active ingredients for stain removal include WO99/43294 (chlorite ion); WO99/27798 (water-soluble products including sodium bicarbonate and encapsulated aspartame); Chinese Patent Document No. 1196235 (hydrogen peroxide); US Patent No. 5,824,291 (alkali metal carbonate peroxyhydrate); WO98/29088 (cysteine protease); WO98/18339 (bone salt, calcium triphosphate) And/or hydroxyapatite); and U.S. Patent No. 5,629,035 (alkali metal bicarbonate).

US Patent No. 4,952,407 discloses a chewing gum composition containing a plaque remover in the form of glycerol monolaurate. The composition generally contains a high filler content, where the filler is an inorganic material such as calcium carbonate, talc, sodium bicarbonate, dicalcium phosphate, and mixtures thereof.

For coated chewing gum compositions, as disclosed in WO 00/35296 and WO 00/35298, it is known to provide an active agent, such as a medicament, in the chewing gum coating or optional core.

Unlike toothpastes, mouthwashes, and other dentifrice compositions, chewing gum compositions have special problems in delivering agents. Chewing gum compositions usually include a water-insoluble gum base, which constitutes the main body of the chewing gum composition, but often traps agents compatible with the gum base. The addition of an additional amount of agent is also problematic because it can adversely affect the integrity, feel and/or taste performance of the chewing gum composition.

Therefore, if a stain remover can be effectively added to a chewing gum composition and released from it in a manner that provides an effective amount of stain remover during chewing, it will be useful for cleaning dental materials including teeth. Significant progress has been made in the field of stain removers. Therefore, the chewing gum composition not only provides users with chewing pleasure, but also provides a beneficial tooth cleaning effect.

Confectionery compositions are well known in the art. For example, such compositions include hard candies, nougats, panning goods, jelly candies, center-filled candies, soft candies, and the like. Unlike chewing gum compositions, which often stay in the mouth for a few minutes or longer, confectionery compositions tend to stay in the mouth for a shorter time because they dissolve faster by chewing. Nonetheless, it is very beneficial to provide an effective amount of stain remover to the candy composition so that they can provide a beneficial dentifrice effect.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention generally relates to stain-removing chewing gum and confectionery compositions in which stain-removing materials have been effectively added to obtain a sufficient amount of stain-removing materials to achieve stain-removing effects.

In a specific aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stain removing composition selected from chewing gum compositions and candy compositions, which includes an effective stain removing amount of at least one selected from anionic surfactants or nonionic surfactants A stain remover, which is provided in a manner capable of releasing an effective amount of stain remover from the composition.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stain removing chewing gum composition, the composition comprising a core and a coating composed of at least one layer, wherein at least one of the core and the coating contains an effective amount of anionic Or at least one stain remover among nonionic surfactants or mixtures thereof. In addition, a method for removing stains by using the chewing gum composition of the present invention is also disclosed.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a chewing gum composition in which a stain remover is added at a time during its preparation, which promotes the release of the stain remover during chewing movement.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a stain removing candy composition is provided, which includes an effective stain removing amount of at least one stain removing agent selected from anionic or nonionic surfactants or mixtures thereof. In addition, a method for removing stains by using the candy composition of the present invention is also disclosed.

In a preferred form of the present invention, both chewing gum and confectionery composition surfactants are selected from neutralized long-chain fatty acid esters and salts, most preferably containing 14-20 carbon atoms, and especially stearin Sodium and sodium palmitate and their mixtures, as well as mixtures of citric acid monoglycerides and diglycerides.

Detailed description of the present invention The applicant has determined that by appropriately selecting the stain remover and the formula of the chewing gum and candy composition and the manner in which the stain remover is added to the composition, it is possible to prepare a chewing gum and candy composition that effectively removes stains. An effective amount of the stain remover can be released to bring it into contact with the surface of dental materials, including the surface of the teeth, while maintaining the sensory properties normally associated with these products.

The chewing gum composition of the present invention may be coated or uncoated, and may be in the form of blocks, sticks, granules, balls, and the like. The composition of different forms of chewing gum composition is similar, but the ratio of each component is different. For example, the coated chewing gum composition may contain a low percentage of softener. Granular and spherical shapes have small chewing gum cores, which are then coated with sugar solution or sugar-free solution to form a hard shell. Blocks and sticks are usually formulated to have a softer texture than chewing gum cores. However, for the implementation of the present invention, in order to overcome any unfavorable softening effect of the active surfactant on the gum base, it is preferable to formulate a block or stick chewing gum with a harder texture (that is, softer than generally used).

Center-filled chewing gum is another common form of chewing gum. The gum part has a similar composition and production method as above. However, the sandwich is generally an aqueous solution or gel, which is injected into the center of the gel during the production process. The stain remover can optionally be added to the center during the production of the center, or added to the gum. The center-filled chewing gum can also be optionally coated and prepared in various forms, such as the form of lollipops.

In order to practice the present invention, it is preferable to use chewing gum in which the stain remover is coated in at least one of the core and the coating. In order to remove stains, the most preferred is coated chewing gum in which the stain remover is at least in the coating.

The chewing gum composition of the present invention includes gum base and most of the components in other typical chewing gum compositions, such as sweeteners, softeners and flavoring agents. The present invention uses at least one stain remover selected from anionic surfactants and nonionic surfactants. The chewing gum composition may contain reduced amounts of softeners, such as lecithin or glycerin, or the softeners may be omitted. In addition, the chewing gum composition contains a larger amount of sugar alcohols than traditional chewing gum compositions, which facilitates the delivery of the stain remover used in the present invention to the tooth surface.

According to one aspect of the chewing gum composition of the present invention, the stain remover is added in the process of producing the chewing gum composition, that is, it is added together with sweeteners, flavors, and the like. In another aspect of the present invention, the stain remover is added in one of the last steps, preferably in the last step of formulating the chewing gum composition. The applicant has determined that the improvement of this method adds the stain remover to the chewing gum composition without the large amount of stain remover that may occur when the stain remover is mixed with the gum base. Therefore, when the stain remover is only loosely contained in the chewing gum composition, it can be more effectively released from the chewing gum composition during a typical chewing movement. Therefore, the material part of the stain remover does not contain gum base.

In another aspect of the present invention, the insoluble gum base generally includes elastomers, elastomer plasticizers, waxes, fats, oils, emulsifiers, fillers, texture modifiers, and may include the following stain removers as required.

The elastomer constitutes about 5 to 95% by weight of the gum base, preferably 10 to 70% by weight and most preferably 15 to 45% by weight. Examples of elastomers include synthetic elastomers such as polyisobutylene, polybutene, isobutylene-isoprene copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, polyvinyl acetate, and the like. The elastomer may also include natural elastomers such as natural rubber and natural gums such as joeluton gum, lechicaspi, perillo, massaranduba balata, carbohydrate gum, gutta hang kang or mixtures thereof. Other elastomers are known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

Elastomer plasticizers improve the hardness of the finished chewing gum when they are used in the gum base. The usual amount of elastomer plasticizer is about 0-75% by weight of the gum base, preferably about 5-45% by weight, and most preferably about 10-30% by weight. Examples of elastomer plasticizers include natural rosin esters, such as glyceryl esters of partially hydrogenated rosin, glyceryl esters of tall oil rosin, pentaerythritol esters of partially hydrogenated rosin, methyl esters of rosin, and partially hydrogenated methyl esters, and the like. Synthetic elastomer plasticizers, such as terpene resins, can also be used in the gum base composition.

Waxes include synthetic and naturally occurring waxes such as polyethylene, beeswax, carnauba wax and the like. Petroleum waxes, such as paraffin wax, can also be used. The amount of wax in the gum base is about 0-30% by weight. Wax helps to solidify the finished chewing gum and promotes the release of flavor, while prolonging the shelf life of the product.

Fillers improve the texture of the gum base and facilitate processing. Examples of such fillers include magnesium silicate and aluminum silicate, clay, alumina, talc, titanium dioxide, cellulose polymers, and the like. The general amount of filler is 1-60% by weight.

Examples of softeners used in gum bases include hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, cocoa butter, glycerol monostearate, glycerol triacetate, di- and triglycerides, fatty acids such as stearic acid, palmitic acid, oils Acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, etc.

The gum base constitutes 5 to 95% by weight of the chewing gum composition, more typically 10 to 50% by weight, and most preferably 25 to 35% by weight of the chewing gum. Larger amounts of gum base are preferred.

Other components used in the chewing gum composition include sweeteners, natural or synthetic, and sugar-free or sugar-free. The amount of sweetener in the chewing gum is generally about 20-80% by weight, preferably about 30-60% by weight. Sugar-free sweeteners include, but are not limited to, sugar alcohols, such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, hydrogenated starch hydrolysates, maltitol, and the like. It may also contain high-potency sweeteners, such as trichlorogalactosulfate, aspartame, and acesulfame. The amount of high-potency sweeteners is generally about 0-1.0% by weight.

A wide range of flavoring agents can be selected between about 0.1-10.0% by weight, preferably about 0.5-5.0% by weight. Flavors are well known for use in chewing gum compositions and include citrus oil, pepper mint oil, spearmint oil, wintergreen oil, mint alcohol and the like.

The use of softeners can improve the texture of the chewing gum composition. Different from traditional chewing gum compositions, the softener in the composition of the present invention is usually present in a small amount, accounting for about 0.5-10% by weight of the total weight of the chewing gum.

Other substances that may be present in the chewing gum composition of the present invention include antioxidants (such as butylated hydroxyanisole, butylated hydroxytoluene, β-carotene, tocopherols, colorants, flavors, and the like.

Coating techniques for coating the coating on the chewing gum composition are well known, such as pan coating and spray coating. When implementing the present invention, it is preferable to use a solution suitable for forming a hard candy layer for coating. Both sugars and sugar alcohols can be used for this purpose together with high potency sweeteners, colorants, flavors and binders. When a stain remover is provided in the coating of the chewing gum composition, the stain remover solution is preferably used alternately with a flavoring agent.

The sweetener may comprise about 30% to 80% by weight of the coating syrup weight. The binder may account for about 1% to 15% by weight of the coating syrup weight. Optional additives may also be present in small amounts. Sweeteners suitable for use in coated syrups include sugarless sweeteners, such as polyols, such as xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol, and mixtures thereof; and maltitol, isomalt, hydrogenated starch Hydrolysate and hydrogenated glucose syrup. It can also include monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides. Sugars such as sucrose, fructose, glucose, galatose and maltose can also be used as sweeteners. Other sweeteners suitable for use in the coated syrup include, but are not limited to, free saccharin, water-soluble salts of saccharin, cyclamate, palatinit dihydrochalcone, glycyrrhizin, L-aspartyl- L-phenylalanine methyl ester, amino acid sweeteners, samartine, stevioside, dihydrochalcone compounds, acesulfame salts and mixtures thereof.

Small amounts of other ingredients can be added to the coating syrup, including hygroscopic compounds, anti-adhesive compounds, dispersants and film formers. Suitable hygroscopic compounds for coating syrups include mannitol or dicalcium phosphate. Examples of useful anti-stick compounds that can also function as fillers include talc, magnesium trisilicate, and calcium carbonate. These ingredients may account for about 0.5 wt% to 5 wt% of the weight of the syrup. Examples of dispersants that can be used in coating syrups include titanium dioxide, talc, or other anti-sticking compounds mentioned above.

The coating syrup is usually heated and a part of it is deposited on the core. Generally, one deposition of coating syrup is not enough to provide the required amount or thickness of the coating, and it is usually necessary to coat the second, third or more layers with the coating syrup to achieve the desired weight and thickness of the coating And allow each layer to dry between each application.

A preferred aspect of the chewing gum composition invention adds a stain remover to the coating. The stain remover is preferably added after the syrup is applied. Preferably, the high-potency sweetener coating is subsequently applied before coating with the stain remover. Preferably, the application of the stain remover and the application of the flavor solution are performed alternately. In the practice of the present invention, the stain remover can be applied as a solution or as a dry material, if appropriate, melted and applied. For fatty acid salts, dry materials may be preferred. When coating the chewing gum composition, the coating of the coating syrup is continuous until the average weight of the chewing gum monomer reaches the required coating weight, preferably 20-30 wt% of the finished pellet weight.

The present invention also includes confectionery compositions containing appropriately selected stain removers. Such confectionery compositions include compressed tablets such as mints, hard candies, nougats, gelatins, filled candies, soft candies, sugar-coated foods, and other compositions that meet the generally accepted definition of confectionery composition.

Confectionery compositions in the form of compressed tablets such as mints can generally be prepared by mixing finely screened sugar or sugar substitutes, flavoring agents (such as peppermint flavoring agents), fillers such as gum arabic, and optional coloring agents. And made. Mix the flavor and filler together and then gradually add sugar or sugar substitutes, and if necessary, add coloring agents.

The product is then passed through a sieve with the desired mesh size (such as 12 mesh) to granulate, and then dried usually at 55-60EC. The obtained powder is fed into a tablet press equipped with a large-size punch, and the formed pellets are broken into granules and then compressed.

Highly cooked candies usually contain sugar or sugar substitutes, glucose, water, flavors and optional coloring agents. Dissolve sugar in water, then add glucose. Bring the mixture to boiling. The obtained liquid, possibly pre-added with colorants, is poured onto the oiled block and cooled. The perfume is then added and kneaded into a cooled mass. The obtained mixture is then fed into a candy bar mill device known from the prior art to form the final hard candy shape.

Nougat compositions usually include two main ingredients: highly cooked candies and flabet. For example, mixing egg white or its substitute with water and stirring to form a slight foam. The sugar and glucose are added to the water and boiled usually at about 130-140EC, the obtained boiled product is poured into a mixer and whipped until milky.

The whipped egg white and flavor are blended with the milky product, and then the blend is thoroughly mixed.

For other details on the preparation of confectionery compositions, see Skuses Complete Confectioner (13th edition) (1957), including pp. 41-71, 133-144 and 255-262; and Sugar Confectionery Manufacture (2nd edition) (1995), EB Jackson , Editor, pp. 129-168, 169-188, 189-216, 218-234 and 236-258, all of which are incorporated herein for reference.

According to the present invention, an anionic and/or nonionic surfactant with an effective amount of stain removal is used as a stain remover for chewing gum and candy compositions. Typical examples of stain removers that can be used in the present invention include sulfated butyl oleate, neutralized long-chain fatty acid esters and salts, especially the sodium and potassium salts of stearic acid and palmitic acid and their methyl and ethyl esters. , Sodium oleate, fumaric acid salt, potassium glomate, organic acid monoglycerides and diglycerides, such as stearyl monoglyceride citrate, succinyl stearin, dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate, glycerin Tristearate, lecithin, hydroxylated lecithin, sodium lauryl sulfate, acetylated monoglycerides, succinylated monoglycerides, citric acid monoglycerides, ethoxylated mono- and diglycerides, Sorbitan monostearate, calcium stearoyl-2-lactate, stearoyl-sodium lactate, glycerol and propylene glycerol ester of lactic acid fatty acid, glycerol lactate of C8-C24 fatty acid, preferably C14-C20 Fatty acid glycerol lactate, C8-C24 fatty acid polyglyceride, preferably C14-C20 fatty acid polyglyceride, propylene glycol alginate, sucrose C8-C24 fatty acid ester, preferably sucrose C14-C20 fatty acid ester, diacetyl Tartaric acid or citric acid mono- and diglycerides, triacetin and the like and mixtures thereof.

Exemplary preferred stain removers are selected from sodium stearate or sodium palmitate or mixtures thereof, sodium oleate, citric acid or a mixture of lactic acid monoglycerides and diglycerides, glyceryl stearate and glyceryl lactate and mixtures thereof, Sucrose monostearate, sucrose distearate, sucrose monolaurate, sucrose dilaurate, polyglycerol monostearate, polyglycerol monolaurate, and mixtures thereof.

The preferred surfactant used in the chewing gum composition of the present invention is sodium stearate, usually provided as a 50/50 mixture with sodium palmitate, and at least one citric acid of monoglycerides and/or diglycerides A mixture of esters. A suitable example of a commercially available stain remover of the latter type is IMWITOR 370(R) sold by the Condea Vista company. Another preferred surfactant is a mixture of lactic acid monoglycerides and diglycerides.

The amount of stain remover in the chewing gum composition generally accounts for about 0.2-2.0% by weight of the total weight of the chewing gum composition. The preferred amount of stain remover is about 0.4-1.2 wt%. The amount of stain remover will vary according to the specific individual and combination of stain remover used, the types of other ingredients in the chewing gum composition, and their corresponding amounts. For example, the preferred amount of sodium stearate is about 0.5% by weight, the preferred amount of a mixture of lactic acid monoglycerides and diglycerides is about 0.6% by weight, and a mixture of citric acid monoglycerides and diglycerides (IMWITOR 370® The preferred amount of) is about 0.6-1.0 wt%.

The preferred stain removers used in the candy composition of the present invention are sodium stearate, sodium palmitate and mixtures thereof. As indicated for the chewing gum composition, sodium stearate is generally provided in a roughly equal mixture with sodium palmitate.

The range of the amount of stain remover that can be used in the candy composition of the present invention depends on the type of candy composition and the specific individual or combination of stain remover used. Generally, for a specific stain remover, the amount of stain remover used in the candy composition of the present invention will exceed the amount of stain remover used in the chewing gum composition.

Typically, the amount of stain remover in the candy composition is about 0.2-20% by weight of the total weight of the candy composition. The preferred amount of stain remover is about 3-17% by weight.

Examples The following examples are submitted only to illustrate the present invention, but not to limit the scope of the application fully covered by the specification and claims.

Example I: Preparation of Chewing Gum Products A. Chunk Chewing Gum Table 1

*Aspartame, Ace K blend **Sodium stearate/sodium palmitate@50/50 The chewing gum composition samples 1 and 2 shown in Table 1 were prepared by traditional methods. The gum base is heated enough to soften the base without adversely affecting the physical and chemical composition of the base. Then add the melted gum base and filler to the mixing pot. Mix and add sugar alcohol, glycerin, flavor, high potency sweetener and stain remover to obtain a uniform mixture, wherein the stain remover is added last. The mixture is then poured out of the mixing pot and rolled and trimmed to the required single piece size using conventional techniques.

Sample 3 of the chewing gum composition shown in Table 2 was prepared using the same method as Samples 1 and 2, except that the mixture was rolled and trimmed to a typical stick-like chewing gum form. Samples 4-6 were prepared using the same method as sample 3.

Table 2

*Aspartame/Ace K mixture **Sucrose stearate or sucrose laurate***Monstearate or monolaurate The sample 7 of the chewing gum composition shown in Table 3 is used for samples 1 and 2 Prepared in the same manner as described in the traditional method. Samples 8 and 9 were prepared using the same method as sample 7.

table 3

High potency sweetener*: Aspartame/Ace K mixture sugar ester**: Sucrose stearate or sucrose laurate polyglyceryl fatty acid ester***: Monostearate or monolaurate B .Coated chewing gum-stain remover included in the coating Table 4

*Aspartame/Ace K blend **Sodium stearate/sodium palmitate@50/50 gum core is prepared using the same method as described in Part A of this article. The molten gum base and filler are added to the mixing pot and mixing begins. Add the mixed sugar alcohol, glycerin, flavor, and high-potency sweetener mixture in several portions to obtain a uniform mixture. The mixture is then discharged from the mixing pot and a core is formed using conventional techniques.

Place the core in the coating pan and break it into individual pieces when needed. The sugar-free solution containing 70wt% maltitol, titanium dioxide, gum arabic and water is heated to between 70°C and 80°C. The solution is sprayed on a single piece of chewing gum core in layers, and dried between each spraying, while the coating pan is continuously rotated to ensure that a smooth and uniform coating of the chewing gum core is obtained.

The coating accumulated to about 8% of the weight of the finished pellet. Ace-K was then added and then another layer was coated with the above coating solution, followed by drying.

The 20% stain remover solution shown in Table 2 was prepared by heating water to between 65°C and 75°C and then slowly adding the stain remover. The solution is mixed under low-speed stirring to avoid the formation of foam until a clear solution is obtained. For the entire coating process, the solution is kept at the same temperature.

After the high-potency sweetener layer is dried, add the stain remover and flavoring solution to the alternating layers until all the various materials are added, in which each layer must be dry. The coating process is continuously performed using the coating solution until a coating that accounts for 24 wt% of the finished pellet weight is obtained.

The coating is then externally applied with a conventional unprocessed solution to obtain a shell weight of 25% by weight. The pellets were then polished with candelilla wax in a traditional manner in a polishing disc.

Sample 13 of the chewing gum composition shown in Table 5 was prepared using a conventional method in the same manner as shown for samples 10-12. The preparation method of samples 14 and 15 is the same as the preparation method of sample 13.

table 5

*Aspartame/Ace K blend** Sucrose stearate or sucrose laurate*** Monostearate or monolaurate C. Coated chewing gum-contains stain remover in the core Table 6

*Aspartame/Ace K mixture **Sodium stearate/sodium palmitate@50/50 chewing gum core is prepared using the same traditional method as described in Part A, with the stain remover added last. The mixture is then discharged from the mixing pot and a core is formed using conventional techniques.

The core is placed in a coating pan and coated according to the method shown in Part B of this document, except that the operation of applying the stain-removing agent-containing layer in this method is omitted.

Example 2: Efficacy test of chewing gum products A. Mechanical chewing test The chewing gum sample 16 prepared according to the above method was tested in an in vitro mechanical chewing model. A commercially available whitening pellet-based chewing gum containing sodium bicarbonate was used as a control. The chewing gum sample was chewed with a chewing machine, in which there were stained bull teeth on the chewing surface, simulating the upper and lower teeth of a person. The sample was chewed for five minutes. The Chrom-A-Meter reading was used before placing the bovine tooth sample in the chewing machine and after one week of simulated chewing (28 doses). The color change is then determined by calculating the DE value. Then remove all the stains on the bovine tooth sample, and use the Chrom-A-Meter reading again. Then calculate the percentage of stain reduction. The results are shown in Table 7.

Table 7-Stain reduction

The test showed that compared with the commercially available tooth whitening chewing gum, sample 16 had less stains after the test period.

B. Clinical trial trial I: Divide sixty individuals into 4 groups, 15 individuals in each group. Group I was not treated. Group II used the chewing gum composition of sample 10, Group III used the chewing gum composition of sample 12, and Group IV used the above-mentioned commercially available pellet-type tooth whitening gum containing sodium bicarbonate as a control group.

Each individual used chewing gum after meals and observed the stain removal effect after 2 weeks and 4 weeks. The results are shown in Table 8.

Table 8-Stain Score*

*The McPhearson improvement of Lobene stain index is shown in Table 8. Compared with the untreated group and the above-mentioned commercially available pellet tooth whitening gum containing sodium bicarbonate, samples 10 and 12 showed stains after a 4-week test period. The situation is reduced.

Test II: Two hundred individuals were divided into 4 groups, 50 individuals in each group. Group I was not treated. Group II used the chewing gum composition of sample 10, Group III used the chewing gum composition of sample 11, and Group IV used the chewing gum composition of sample 16.

Each individual used chewing gum after meals and observed the stain removal effect after 4-8 weeks. The results are shown in Table 9.

Table 9-Stain reduction

Table 10-Pairwise comparison

As shown in Tables 9 and 10, compared with the untreated group, the chewing gum compositions of samples 10, 11 and 16 exhibited significant stain removal effects.

Example 3: Preparation of pressed mint product Sample 17

2000 batches of the composition for forming the pressed mint product of the present invention were prepared as follows.

98.0% by weight of sorbitol, 0.5% by weight of silicon dioxide, 0.3% by weight of flavoring agent and 0.7% by weight of aspartame are mixed in a mixer for two minutes until a homogeneous mixture is obtained. 0.1% by weight of sodium stearate was added to the mixture, and then blended for four minutes. The resulting mixture is made into individual compressed tablets according to traditional methods.

Samples 18 and 19 repeated the method used in sample 17, except that the amount of sodium stearate was increased to 0.5% (sample 18) and 3.0% (sample 19), respectively, and the amount of sorbitol was reduced accordingly.

Sample 20 and the control repeated the method of Sample 17 to form a compressed tablet composition containing various ingredients shown in Table 11.

Table 11

Example 4: Efficacy test of compressed mint products The compressed tablets produced according to sample 20 and the comparative example were tested to determine their ability to remove stains from hydroxyapatite discs.

Under the stirring of a stir bar operating at 300 rpm, 400 ml of deionized water was heated and kept at 37 EC. Suspend two stained hydroxyapatite discs in the water. The test mint product was immersed in water and allowed to dissolve. Once the mint product is dissolved, the disc is removed from the test solution. Repeat this process for different mint product weight/dissolution time. Use Chrom-A-Meter readings before and after disc processing, and calculate the difference. Repeat this process using only deionized water and calculate the difference before and after the treatment. These samples were compared with control samples and water as a control, and the difference in stain reduction% was calculated. The results are shown in Table 12.

Table 12

The results shown in Table 12 give the percentage increase in stain reduction associated with sample 20 compared to a control mint composition with only water and no stain remover.