Oral gum composition

1 . An oral composition comprising:

a gum base;

one or more bulking agents;

an active ingredient having a basic amine functionality; and

a combination of an organic acid having a logP value from about 1 to about 12, and an alkali metal salt of an organic acid having a logP value from about 1 to about 12, wherein at least a portion of the active ingredient having the basic amine functionality is associated with at least a portion of the organic acid or the alkali metal salt thereof, the association in the form of an ion pair between the basic amine and a conjugate base of the organic acid.

2 . The oral composition of claim 1 , in the form of a chewing gum.

3 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid has a logP value of from about 1.4 to about 4.5.

4 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid has a logP value of from about 2.5 to about 3.5.

5 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid has a logP value of from about 4.5 to about 12, and wherein the composition further comprises a solubility enhancer.

6 . The oral composition of claim 5 , wherein the solubility enhancer is glycerol or propylene glycol.

7 . The oral composition of claim 1 , comprising from about 0.05, about 0.1, about 1, about 1.5, about 2, or about 5, to about 10, about 15, or about 20 molar equivalents of the organic acid, the alkali metal salt thereof, or the combination thereof, relative to the active ingredient having a basic amine functionality, calculated as the amine free base.

8 . The oral composition of claim 1 , comprising from about 2 to about 10 molar equivalents of the organic acid, the alkali metal salt thereof, or the combination thereof, relative to the active ingredient having a basic amine functionality, calculated as the amine free base.

9 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid comprises benzoic acid, a menthyl or tocopherol monoester of a dicarboxylic acid, or a combination thereof.

10 . The oral composition of claim 9 , wherein the dicarboxylic acid is malonic acid, succinic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid, fumaric acid, maleic acid, or a combination thereof.

11 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid comprises tocopherol succinate, monomenthyl succinate, monomenthyl fumarate, monomenthyl glutarate, or a combination thereof.

12 . The oral composition of claim 11 , further comprising benzoic acid and sodium benzoate.

13 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid is benzoic acid and the salt thereof is sodium benzoate.

14 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the alkali metal is sodium or potassium.

15 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a ratio of the organic acid to the alkali metal salt of the organic acid is from about 0.1 to about 10.

16 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a pH of the composition is from about 4.0 to about 9.0.

17 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a pH of the composition is from about 4.5 to about 7.

18 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a pH of the composition is from about 5.5 to about 7.

19 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a pH of the composition is from about 4.0 to about 5.5.

20 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein a pH of the composition is from about 7.0 to about 9.0.

21 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the active ingredient having a basic amine functionality is nicotine.

22 . The oral composition of claim 21 , wherein the nicotine is present in an amount of from about 0.001 to about 10% by weight of the composition, calculated as the free base and based on the total weight of the composition.

23 . The oral composition of claim 21 , wherein a portion of the nicotine is present as a salt, with the organic acid, as nicotine polacrilex, or a combination thereof.

24 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the gum base comprises a synthetic elastomer.

25 . The oral composition of claim 24 , wherein the gum base further comprises a plasticizer, a filler, a softener, an emulsifier, a wax, an anti-tacking agent, an antioxidant, or a combination thereof.

26 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the bulking agent comprises one or more sugar alcohols.

27 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the oral composition comprises, as the bulking agent, a combination of:

sorbitol in an amount from about 25 to about 50% by weight;

maltitol in an amount from about 10 to about 20% by weight; and

isomalt in an amount from about 10 to about 20% by weight, each based on the total weight of the oral composition.

28 . The oral composition of claim 1 , further comprising one or more additional active ingredients, one or more flavoring agents, one or more salts, one or more sweeteners, one or more humectants, a tobacco material, or combinations thereof.

29 . The oral composition of claim 1 , further comprising one or more additional active ingredients selected from the group consisting of nutraceuticals, botanicals, stimulants, amino acids, vitamins, cannabinoids, cannabimimetics, and terpenes.

30 . The oral composition of claim 1 , comprising:

the gum base in an amount from about 20 to about 30% by weight, based on the total weight of the oral composition;

the bulking agent in an amount from about 50 to about 80% by weight, based on the total weight of the oral composition, wherein the bulking agent comprises one or more sugar alcohols;

a humectant in an amount from about 1 to about 2% by weight, based on the total weight of the oral composition;

nicotine benzoate; and

sodium benzoate.

31 . The oral composition of claim 30 , further comprising nicotine polacrilex.

32 . The oral composition of claim 1 , further comprising flavor granules.

33 . The oral composition of claim 32 , wherein the flavor granules comprise:

a sugar alcohol in an amount by weight from about 60 to about 90%;

a humectant in an amount by weight from about 16 to about 22%;

a sweetener in an amount by weight from about 0.1 to about 0.5%;

a filler in an amount by weight from about 1 to about 3%;

a colorant; and

a flavorant,

wherein each amount by weight is based on the total weight of the flavor granules.

34 . The oral composition of claim 32 , wherein the flavor granules comprise:

a sugar alcohol in an amount by weight from about 15 to about 35%;

a filler in an amount by weight from about 20 to about 50%;

a flavorant in an amount by weight from about 20 to about 30%;

a humectant in an amount by weight from about 15 to about 30%;

a sweetener in an amount by weight from about 0.1 to about 0.5%; and

a colorant in an amount by weight from about 0.1 to about 1.5%,

wherein each amount by weight is based on the total weight of the flavor granules.

35 . The oral composition of claim 34 , wherein the sugar alcohol is isomalt, the filler is microcrystalline cellulose, the humectant is glycerin, and the sweetener is sucralose.

36 . The oral composition of claim 32 , wherein the flavor granules comprise:

a combination of two sugar alcohols in a total amount by weight from about 96 to about 99%;

a sweetener in an amount by weight from about 0.1 to about 0.5%; and a colorant and a flavorant comprising the remainder of the flavor granules.

37 . The oral composition of claim 36 , wherein the flavor granules consist of:

isomalt in an amount by weight from about 92 to about 96%;

maltitol syrup in an amount by weight from about 4 to about 6%;

sucralose in an amount by weight from about 0.1 to about 0.5%; and

the balance consists of colorant and flavorant.

38 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid and the salt of the organic acid both comprise the same organic acid.

39 . The oral composition of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid and the salt of the organic acid each comprise a different organic acid.