Flavored dentifrice

Claim 2

A DENTIFRICE HAVING A LIQUID VEHICLE AND WHICH INCLUDES AS A MINOR PROPORTION THEREOF AN ENCAPSULATED SWEETENER COMPOSITION COMPRISING ABOUT 0.1 TO 10% OF A DIPEPTIDE SWEETENER IN ADMIXTURE WITH A NON-TOXIC ACID-CONTAINING COMPONENT AND ENCAPSULATED OR COVERED WITH A SHELL OR COATING THROUGH WHICH SAID ADMIXTURE DOES NOT PENETRATE SUBSTANTIALLY DURING STORAGE OF THE DENTIFRICE AND WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY UNPENETRABLE BY THE COMPONENTS OF SAID DENTIFRICE, CAUSING THE SAME TO BE IS BROKEN DURING USE OF THE DENTIFRICE, CAUSING THE SAME TO BE RELEASED, SAID ACID-CONTAINING COMPONENT INCLUDED IN AMOUNTS SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE PH IN SAID CAPSULE AT SUBSTANTIALLY ABOUT 3-5 AND THEREBY IMPART AN ACID PH TO SAID SWEETENER UPON FRACTURE OF SAID CAPSULE.

Claim 3

A dentifrice according to claim 1 wherein said dipeptide sweetener has the general formula:

Claim 4

A dentifrice according to claim 2 wherein R is a methyl group.

Claim 5

A dentifrice according to claim 1 wherein said acid-containing component is selected from the group consisting of citric-, malic-, adipic-, fumaric-, phosphoric-, sulfuric-, pyrophosphoric acids and compatible mixtures thereof.

Claim 6

A dentifrice according to claim 1 which is a toothpaste including a polishing agent in said vehicle.

Claim 7

A dentifrice according to claim 5 which comprises about 20 to 90 percent of said vehicle and about 5 to 75 percent of said polishing agent, said capsules being of particle sizes within the range of about 1 micron to 2 millimeters in diameter.

Claim 8

A dentifrice according to claim 6 which also includes about 0.5 to 10 percent of a gelling agent and about 0.5 to 5 percent of a synthetic organic or soap detergent and in which the polishing agent is selected from the group consisting of sodium aluminum silicate, hydrated alumina, dicalcium phosphate, silica xerogel and calcium carbonate and mixture thereof, the vehicle is selected from the group consisting of sorbitol, glycerol and water and mixtures thereof, the gelling agent is selected from the group consisting of sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, polyvinyl alcohol, Irish moss and silica aerogel and mixtures thereof, the synthetic organic or soap detergent is selected from the group consisting of water-soluble higher fatty acid soaps and synthetic anionic and nonionic detergents, and the capsule wall material is selected from the group consisting of animal, vegetable, mineral and synthetic waxes, thermoplastics and resinous materials.

Claim 9

A dentifrice according to claim 7 which contains therein, apart from the encapsulated sweetener, about 0.1 to 2 percent of flavoring material, with a greater proportion of such or different flavoring material present in encapsulated form.

Claim 10

A dentifrice according to claim 5 additionally containing 0.1 to 3.0 percent of a further sweetening agent in said vehicle.

Claim 11

A dentifrice according to claim 5 additionally containing 0.1 to 10 percent of a combination of flavoring oils and sweetening agents in said vehicle.

Claim 12

A dentifrice according to claim 1 wherein a minor amount of a member selected from the group consisting of further sweetening agents, flavor oils and an inert dental polishing agent is encapsulated with said dipeptide sweetener.

Claim 13

A dentifrice as defined in claim 5 wherein said vehicle is aqueous.

Claim 14

A dentifrice as defined in claim 5 wherein said vehicle includes a water-insoluble dental polishing agent.

Claim 15

A dentifrice as defined in claim 1 further containing an effective amount of an anti-bacterial agent.

Claim 16

A dentifrice as defined in claim 5 wherein said polishing agent is about 20-95 percent by weight of the vehicle.

Claim 17

A dentifrice as defined in claim 1 additionally containing a surface-active agent.

Claim 18

A dentifrice as defined in claim 16 wherein said surface-active agent is selected from the group consisting of water-soluble sulfates of compounds having long chain alkyl radicals.

Claim 19

A dentifrice as defined in claim 16 wherein said surface-active agent is an Alpha -olefin sulfonate.

Claim 20

A dentifrice according to claim 15 in clear gel form, containing a polishing agent of approximately the same index of refraction as the balance of the dentifrice apart from the encapsulated portion, the capsules of which are of particle sizes in the 50 microns to 1 millimeter diameter range.

Claim 21

A dentifrice according to claim 19 wherein a coloring agent present in the capsules is capable of partially peNetrating the walls of the capsules and entering the body of the rest of the dentifrice to color it to an extent less than that of the color of the coloring agent in the interior of the capsules when the dentifrice is ready for use.