Oral composition

Abstract

To provide an oral composition containing a plum fruit juice concentrate and having improved dispersibility in water.SOLUTION: An oral composition, which contains (A) a plum fruit juice concentrate and (B) a component selected from the group consisting of chlorella, α-lipoic acid, β-carotene and saw palmetto extract, has improved dispersibility in water.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an oral composition comprising a plum juice concentrate and having improved dispersibility in water. [Background technology]

[0002] Plums are rich in ingredients that are useful for improving human health, and have been processed into various forms for consumption. Among them, plum extract, obtained by boiling down and concentrating plum juice, contains large amounts of plum extract-specific ingredients such as mumefural and 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural, which are the fruit juice components that change during the heating and concentrating process, and is known to have various health benefits such as improving immunity, improving blood flow, recovering from fatigue, suppressing Helicobacter pylori, improving bowel movements, strengthening liver function, and promoting calcium absorption.

[0003] Ume extract is a black viscous liquid obtained by heating and concentrating ume juice. Patent Document 1 describes that when ume extract is diluted with water, water-insoluble components float or precipitate.

[0004] Cited Document 2 discloses a method for adding at least one of sugars, sugar alcohols and glycoside sweeteners to concentrated fruit juice, such as plum juice, which is concentrated 5 times, in order to suppress the production of insoluble matter derived from fruit that occurs when the fruit concentrate is diluted with water. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-222633 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2002-17317 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Plum extract, a black viscous liquid, is obtained by concentrating plum juice by several tens of times or more, and therefore contains various components that are not contained in raw plums and are generated by heat concentration, and its dispersibility when diluted in water is extremely poor. Although additives such as sugars, sugar alcohols, and glycoside-based sweeteners as disclosed in Patent Document 2 are effective for plum juice concentrated by about 5 times, the same effectiveness cannot be expected for plum extract, which has extremely poor dispersibility. Furthermore, in view of the recent increase in health consciousness, it is desirable to reduce the dependency on additives, which are non-functional ingredients, in order to improve the dispersibility in water. If other functional ingredients can be used to improve the dispersibility of plum extract in water, it is considered desirable because it reduces the dependency on additives, which are non-functional ingredients, and also provides a complex effect by co-formulation of other functional ingredients.

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an oral composition which contains a plum juice concentrate (so-called plum extract) and has improved dispersibility in water. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present inventors found that when functional ingredients having immune-improving effects similar to those of the plum juice concentrate were made to coexist with a water-diluted plum juice concentrate, specific ingredients, specifically ingredients selected from the group consisting of chlorella, α-lipoic acid, β-carotene, and saw palmetto extract, were able to improve the dispersibility of the water-diluted plum juice concentrate. In view of the fact that each of these specific ingredients has extremely poor dispersibility in water when used alone, it was extremely unexpected that the dispersibility would be improved by making them coexist with a water-diluted plum juice concentrate. The present invention was completed based on this finding.

[0009] That is, the present invention provides the following aspects. Item 1. An oral composition comprising (A) a plum juice concentrate and (B) an ingredient selected from the group consisting of chlorella, saw palmetto extract, α-lipoic acid, and β-carotene. Item 2. The oral composition according to Item 1, wherein the component (B) is contained in an amount of 0.01 to 43 parts by dry weight per 1 part by dry weight of the component (A). Item 3. The oral composition according to Item 1 or 2, wherein the proportion of the component (A) is 2 to 99 parts by dry weight per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition. Item 4. The oral composition according to any one of Items 1 to 3, wherein the proportion of the component (B) is 1 to 98 parts by dry weight per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition. Item 5. The oral composition according to any one of Items 1 to 4, wherein the content of the component (A) when ingested is 0.01 to 15% by dry weight. Item 6. The oral composition according to any one of Items 1 to 5, wherein the content of the component (B) when ingested is 0.1 to 10% by weight in terms of dry weight. Item 7. The oral composition according to any one of Items 1 to 6, which is a powdered beverage, a granulated beverage, or a concentrated beverage. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, there is provided an oral composition which contains a plum juice concentrate and has improved dispersibility in water. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] The oral composition of the present disclosure is characterized by containing (A) plum juice concentrate (hereinafter also referred to as "component (A)") and (B) a component selected from the group consisting of chlorella, saw palmetto extract, α-lipoic acid, and β-carotene (hereinafter also referred to as "predetermined component" or "component (B)"). The oral composition of the present disclosure will be described in detail below. In this specification, a numerical range indicated by two numerical values ​​and "to" includes the two numerical values ​​as the lower limit and the upper limit. For example, the expression "2 to 15% by weight" means 2% by weight or more and 15% by weight or less.

[0012] (A) Plum juice concentrate The oral composition of the present disclosure contains plum juice concentrate as component (A).

[0013] The component (A) used in the present disclosure is generally called plum extract or plum flesh extract, and is specifically obtained by boiling down plum juice until it becomes at least a black paste (candy-like). In the present invention, specific forms of the component (A) include a paste and a dried product (a paste from which water has been removed), and any of the forms may be used alone as the component (A), or a combination of multiple forms may be used.

[0014] In the oral composition of the present disclosure, the content of component (A) is not particularly limited, and examples of the ratio of the dry weight of component (A) per 100 parts by weight of the dry weight of the oral composition include 2 to 99 parts by weight, 4 to 99 parts by weight, 30 to 99 parts by weight, 40 to 99 parts by weight, 50 to 99 parts by weight, 60 to 99 parts by weight, 70 to 99 parts by weight, 80 to 99 parts by weight, 90 to 99 parts by weight, or 95 to 99 parts by weight, or 2 to 97 parts by weight, 2 to 95 parts by weight, 2 to 85 parts by weight, 2 to 75 parts by weight, 2 to 65 parts by weight, 2 to 55 parts by weight, 2 to 45 parts by weight, 2 to 35 parts by weight, 2 to 10 parts by weight, or 2 to 5 parts by weight.

[0015] The content of component (A) when the oral composition of the present disclosure is ingested can be, for example, 0.01 to 15 wt%, 0.02 to 15 wt%, 3 to 15 wt%, 5 to 15 wt%, 6 to 15 wt%, 7 to 15 wt%, or 8 to 15 wt%, or 0.01 to 10 wt%, 0.01 to 8.5 wt%, 0.01 to 8 wt%, 0.01 to 7 wt%, 0.01 to 5 wt%, 0.01 to 1 wt%, or 0.01 to 0.1 wt%, calculated as the dry weight of component (A).

[0016] (B) Specified Ingredients The oral composition of the present disclosure contains, as the (B) component, a component selected from the group consisting of (B1) chlorella (hereinafter also referred to as "(B1) component"), (B2) saw palmetto extract (hereinafter also referred to as "(B2) component"), (B3) α-lipoic acid (hereinafter also referred to as "(B3) component"), and (B4) β-carotene (hereinafter also referred to as "(B4) component"). The (B) component improves the dispersibility of the (A) component, which has extremely poor dispersibility in water. Although the (B) component itself has extremely poor dispersibility in water, the (B) component itself can be improved in dispersibility by being co-formulated with the (A) component. As the (B) component, any one of the four (B1) to (B4) components may be used alone, or two or more may be used in combination.

[0017] (B1) Chlorella: Chlorella is a known component that exerts physiological effects such as improving immunity, reducing blood pressure and cholesterol levels, improving anemia, anti-aging, and relieving constipation.

[0018] Specific examples of Chlorella include plants of the Chlorellaceae family, such as Chlorella pyrenoidosa, Chlorella ellipsoidea, Chlorella vulgaris, and Chlorella regularis. As the component (B1), one of these Chlorella species may be used alone, or multiple species may be used in combination. Among these Chlorella species, Chlorella pyrenoidosa is preferred. Specific forms of the component (B1) include algae of plants of the Chlorellaceae family, dried products thereof, and pulverized products thereof. As the component (B1), any of the forms may be used alone, or multiple forms may be used in combination.

[0019] (B2) Saw Palmetto Extract: Saw palmetto extract is a known component that exerts physiological effects such as immune improving effect, 5α-reductase inhibitory effect, androgen receptor blocking effect, anti-inflammatory effect, and cell proliferation suppression effect.

[0020] Saw palmetto extract is an oily extract obtained by extracting the fruit of saw palmetto (Serenoa repens or Serenoa serrulata), and contains saturated and unsaturated fatty acids having 6 to 18 carbon atoms, such as caproic acid, lauric acid, palmitic acid, and oleic acid, as main components, aliphatic long-chain alcohols, such as octacosanol and triacontanol, and plant sterols, such as β-sitosterol and campesterol. Saw palmetto extract can be produced by extracting unripe or ripe fruit, either as is or after drying, with a lipophilic organic solvent, such as n-hexane, acetone, diethyl ether, and / or ethanol, or by extracting under a supercritical state using carbon dioxide, propane, and / or nitrogen. The extract may be decolorized or deodorized by a conventional method as necessary. As the component (B2), one of these saw palmetto extracts may be used alone, or a combination of multiple types may be used. Among these saw palmetto extracts, those obtained by extraction under supercritical conditions using carbon dioxide are preferred. Specific forms of component (B2) include those in a dry state and those suspended or dissolved in an oil base, and any of the forms may be used alone as component (B2), or a combination of a plurality of forms may be used.

[0021] (B3) α-Lipoic Acid: α-Lipoic acid is a known component that exerts physiological effects such as immune-improving effects, antioxidant effects, and liver metabolism improving effects.

[0022] The α-lipoic acid (thioctic acid) may be any of R,S-(+ / -)-α-lipoic acid, R-(+)-α-lipoic acid, and S-(-)-α-lipoic acid, and any of the isomers may be used alone or in combination as the (B3) component. Specific forms of the (B3) component include those in a crystalline (including powder) state, and those in a state where the crystals are suspended or dissolved in an oil base, and any of the forms may be used alone or in combination as the (B3) component.

[0023] (B4) β-carotene: β-Carotene is a known component that exerts physiological effects such as immune-improving effects and antioxidant effects. β-carotene may be extracted or isolated from natural products (e.g., green and yellow vegetables such as carrots, pumpkin, parsley, basil, and chrysanthemum, fruits such as mango, algae, palm oil, etc.), or may be obtained by fermentation of microorganisms such as microalgae, yeast, and bacteria (e.g., Dunaliella genus, specifically Dunaliella salina, etc.), or may be a synthetic product. As the (B4) component, one of these β-carotenes may be used alone, or multiple types may be used in combination. Specific forms of the (B4) component include those in a crystalline state, and those in a state in which crystals are suspended or dissolved in an oil base, and any form of the (B4) component may be used alone, or multiple forms may be used in combination.

[0024] In the oral composition of the present disclosure, the content of the (B) component may be appropriately set according to the desired degree of dispersibility improvement effect, and the dry weight of the (B) component (total amount) per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of the (A) component is, for example, 0.01 to 43 parts by weight, and from the viewpoint of further enhancing the dispersibility improvement effect, preferably 0.02 to 43 parts by weight, more preferably 0.4 to 43 parts by weight, 0.6 to 43 parts by weight, or 0.8 to 43 parts by weight, even more preferably 10 to 43 parts by weight, 15 to 43 parts by weight, or 20 to 43 parts by weight, and even more preferably 30 to 43 parts by weight, or 35 to 43 parts by weight. In addition, the dry weight of each of the (B1) to (B4) components per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of the (A) component is as follows.

[0025] Component (B1): For example, 0.01 to 43 parts by weight, preferably 0.02 to 43 parts by weight, more preferably 0.4 to 43 parts by weight, 0.6 to 43 parts by weight, or 0.8 to 43 parts by weight, even more preferably 10 to 43 parts by weight, 15 to 43 parts by weight, or 20 to 43 parts by weight, and even more preferably 30 to 43 parts by weight, or 35 to 43 parts by weight, per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of component (A). Component (B2): For example, 0.01 to 43 parts by weight, preferably 0.02 to 43 parts by weight, more preferably 0.2 to 43 parts by weight or 0.3 to 43 parts by weight, and even more preferably 0.4 to 43 parts by weight, 0.6 to 43 parts by weight, 0.8 to 43 parts by weight, 0.8 to 20 parts by weight, 0.8 to 10 parts by weight, 0.8 to 5 parts by weight, or 0.8 to 1 part by weight, per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of component (A). Component (B3): for example, 0.01 to 43 parts by weight, preferably 0.02 to 43 parts by weight, more preferably 0.05 to 43 parts by weight, and even more preferably 0.07 to 43 parts by weight, 0.09 to 43 parts by weight, 0.14 to 43 parts by weight, 0.17 to 43 parts by weight, 0.17 to 20 parts by weight, 0.17 to 10 parts by weight, 0.17 to 1 part by weight, 0.17 to 0.5 parts by weight, 0.17 to 0.3 parts by weight, or 0.17 to 0.1 parts by weight, per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of component (A). Component (B4): for example, 0.01 to 43 parts by weight, preferably 0.02 to 43 parts by weight, more preferably 0.03 to 43 parts by weight, and even more preferably 0.035 to 43 parts by weight, 0.04 to 43 parts by weight, 0.04 to 10 parts by weight, 0.04 to 1 part by weight, 0.04 to 0.5 parts by weight, 0.04 to 0.3 parts by weight, 0.04 to 0.1 parts by weight, or 0.04 to 0.08 parts by weight, per 1 part by weight of the dry weight of the component (A).

[0026] The specific content (total amount) of the (B) component in the oral composition of the present disclosure is, for example, 1 to 98 parts by weight in terms of the ratio of the dry weight of the (B) component per 100 parts by weight of the oral composition, and from the viewpoint of further enhancing the dispersibility improving effect, preferably 2 to 98 parts by weight, 3 to 98 parts by weight, 5 to 98 parts by weight, 15 to 98 parts by weight, 25 to 98 parts by weight, 35 to 98 parts by weight, 45 to 98 parts by weight, 55 to 98 parts by weight, 65 to 98 parts by weight, 75 to 98 parts by weight, 90 to 98 parts by weight, or 95 to 98 parts by weight. In addition, the dry weight of each of the (B1) to (B4) components per 100 parts by weight of the oral composition is as follows.

[0027] Component (B1): for example, 1 to 98 parts by weight, preferably 2 to 98 parts by weight, 3 to 98 parts by weight, 5 to 98 parts by weight, or 15 to 98 parts by weight, 25 to 98 parts by weight, 35 to 98 parts by weight, or 45 to 98 parts by weight, more preferably 55 to 98 parts by weight, 65 to 98 parts by weight, and even more preferably 75 to 98 parts by weight, 90 to 98 parts by weight, or 95 to 98 parts by weight, per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition. Component (B2): for example, 1 to 98 parts by weight, preferably 2 to 98 parts by weight, 3 to 98 parts by weight, 5 to 98 parts by weight, or 15 to 98 parts by weight, and more preferably 25 to 98 parts by weight, 35 to 98 parts by weight, 45 to 98 parts by weight, 45 to 80 parts by weight, 45 to 65 parts by weight, or 45 to 50 parts by weight, per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition. Component (B3): for example, 1 to 98 parts by weight, preferably 2 to 98 parts by weight, 3 to 98 parts by weight, 5 to 98 parts by weight, more preferably 8 to 98 parts by weight, 10 to 98 parts by weight, 13 to 98 parts by weight, 13 to 65 parts by weight, 13 to 50 parts by weight, 13 to 30 parts by weight, or 13 to 20 parts by weight, per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition. Component (B4): for example, 1 to 98 parts by weight, preferably 2 to 98 parts by weight, 3 to 98 parts by weight, more preferably 3.5 to 98 parts by weight, 3.5 to 50 parts by weight, 3.5 to 20 parts by weight, 3.5 to 10 parts by weight, 3.5 to 7 parts by weight, or 3.5 to 5 parts by weight, per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition.

[0028] The content (in terms of dry weight) of component (B) when the oral composition of the present disclosure is taken is, for example, 0.1 to 10% by weight, preferably 0.15 to 10% by weight, more preferably 0.17 to 10% by weight, 0.3 to 10% by weight, 0.7 to 10% by weight, 1 to 10% by weight, 2 to 10% by weight, 3 to 10% by weight, 4 to 10% by weight, 4 to 8% by weight, or 4 to 6% by weight. The dry weights of components (B1) to (B4) when the oral composition of the present disclosure is taken are as follows:

[0029] Component (B1): The content when the oral composition of the present disclosure is consumed is, for example, 0.1 to 10 wt%, preferably 0.15 to 10 wt%, more preferably 0.17 to 10 wt%, 0.3 to 10 wt%, 0.7 to 10 wt%, even more preferably 0.86 to 10 wt%, 0.9 to 10 wt%, 0.9 to 5 wt%, 0.9 to 3 wt%, 0.9 to 2 wt%, or 0.9 to 1.5 wt%. Component (B2): The content when the oral composition of the present disclosure is consumed is, for example, 0.1 to 10% by weight, preferably 0.15 to 10% by weight, more preferably 0.17 to 10% by weight, 0.3 to 10% by weight, 0.7 to 10% by weight, 1 to 10% by weight, and even more preferably 2 to 10% by weight, 2.5 to 10% by weight, 3 to 10% by weight, 3.5 to 10% by weight, 4 to 10% by weight, 4 to 8% by weight, or 4 to 6% by weight. Component (B3): The content when the oral composition of the present disclosure is consumed is, for example, 0.1 to 10 wt%, preferably 0.15 to 10 wt%, more preferably 0.17 to 10 wt%, 0.3 to 10 wt%, 0.5 to 10 wt%, even more preferably 0.7 to 10 wt%, 0.86 to 10 wt%, 0.9 to 10 wt%, 1 to 10 wt%, 1 to 5 wt%, 1 to 3 wt%, 1 to 2 wt%, or 1 to 1.5 wt%. Component (B4): The content when the oral composition of the present disclosure is consumed is, for example, 0.1 to 10 wt %, or 0.15 to 10 wt %, preferably 0.17 to 10 wt %, or 0.23 to 10 wt %, and more preferably 0.27 to 10 wt %, 0.3 to 10 wt %, 0.3 to 5 wt %, 0.3 to 2 wt %, 0.3 to 1 wt %, or 0.3 to 0.6 wt %.

[0030] Other Ingredients The oral composition of the present disclosure may or may not contain other nutritional components and / or pharmacological components as necessary, in addition to the above-mentioned (A) and (B) components. The nutritional components and pharmacological components are not particularly limited as long as they can be used in foods and / or medicines, and examples thereof include vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fatty acids, flavorings, seasonings, plant extracts (other than the above-mentioned (B) component), etc. These components may be used alone or in combination of two or more. The content of these components is appropriately set depending on the type of nutritional components and / or pharmacological components used and the purpose of the oral composition.

[0031] Furthermore, the oral composition of the present disclosure may or may not contain a base and / or additives, etc., as necessary, in order to prepare it into a desired formulation form. The base and additives are not particularly limited as long as they can be used in foods and / or medicines, and examples thereof include aqueous bases (e.g., water, monohydric alcohols having 1 to 4 carbon atoms), oil bases (e.g., fats and oils, hydrocarbons, etc.), polyhydric alcohols, gelling agents, surfactants, excipients, disintegrants, binders, lubricants, etc. These components may be used alone or in combination of two or more. The content of these components is appropriately set depending on the type of base and / or additives used and the purpose of the oral composition, etc.

[0032] Formulation and product classification The formulation of the oral composition of the present disclosure is not particularly limited, and may be any of liquid, semi-solid (gel, paste), and solid (powder or granule). The oral composition of the present disclosure may be either a non-emulsified composition or an emulsified composition, but is preferably a non-emulsified composition.

[0033] The product classification of the oral composition of the present disclosure is not particularly limited, and may be any of foods and beverages (including special purpose foods and health functional foods (nutritional functional foods, functional foods, foods with functional claims, foods for specified health uses, etc.), as well as general foods (nutritional supplements, health supplements, nutritionally fortified foods, nutritionally regulated foods, supplements, etc.)) and oral pharmaceuticals (including oral quasi-drugs).

[0034] More specific product categories of the oral compositions of the present disclosure include non-concentrated beverages (beverages to be consumed without dilution, when prepared in a liquid formulation), concentrated beverages (beverages to be diluted with water and consumed, when prepared in a liquid or semi-solid formulation), and powdered or granular beverages (beverages to be dispersed in water and consumed, when prepared in a solid formulation).

[0035] Purpose The oral composition of the present disclosure can be used for applications that utilize the known effects of component (A) and / or component (B). Examples of applications of the oral composition of the present disclosure include immune improvement, blood flow improvement, fatigue recovery, Helicobacter pylori inhibition, bowel movement improvement, liver function enhancement, calcium absorption promotion, blood pressure reduction, cholesterol level reduction, anemia improvement, anti-aging, urinary disorder improvement, anti-inflammation, and / or cell proliferation inhibition.

[0036] The form of the oral composition of the present disclosure when consumed is a liquid composition dispersed in water.When the oral composition of the present disclosure is prepared in a liquid formulation (non-concentrated beverage), it can be consumed without dilution; when the oral composition of the present disclosure is prepared in a liquid or semi-solid formulation (concentrated beverage), it can be consumed after diluting with water; when the oral composition of the present disclosure is prepared in a solid (powder or granule) formulation (powder or granule beverage), it can be consumed after dispersing in water. EXAMPLES

[0037] The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

[0038] Test Example 1 Liquid oral compositions (total amount of 300 g for Examples 1 and 2 and Comparative Examples 2 and 3, total amount of 30 g for all others) were prepared by mixing component (A), component (a), component (B), and / or component (b) with water to obtain the compositions shown in Tables 1 to 5. Details of component (A), component (B), and component (b) are as follows.

[0039] Component (A) · Ume juice concentrate: Ume juice is boiled down until it becomes a black paste, resulting in a viscous liquid known as ume extract (water content 15% by weight).

[0040] (B) Component (B1) Chlorella: Dried Chlorella pyrenoidosa (unground) (B2) Saw Palmetto Extract: Extract of saw palmetto fruit extracted by supercritical extraction with carbon dioxide gas (B3) α-lipoic acid: Crystalline powder of R,S-(+ / -)-α-lipoic acid (racemic form) (B4) β-carotene: synthetic, suspended in corn oil at 30% by weight.

[0041] (b) Component Moringa Extract: Extract of the seeds of Moringa oleifera · Calcium pantothenate: Calcium pantothenate Vitamin C: L-ascorbic acid Pine bark extract: French maritime pine bark extract "Pycnogenol" (registered trademark) Riboflavin: Vitamin B2 crystalline powder β-glucan: β-glucan derived from Saccharomyces yeast, purified by removing other cell wall components. GABA: A powder containing 90% or more GABA by weight, separated from the barley lactic acid fermentation liquid. Equol: A refined product of equol obtained by fermenting raw materials containing daidzein with equol-producing bacteria. Zinc yeast: Saccharomyces cerevisiae, zinc element content is 5.56% by weight

[0042] The appearance of the obtained liquid 9 hours and 1 week after preparation was classified according to the following criteria, and a dispersibility score was derived. A higher dispersibility score indicates better dispersibility. The results are shown in Tables 1 to 5. 1: Complete settling or floating of insoluble matter is observed. 2: Some settling or floating of insoluble matter is observed. 3: No settling or floating was observed, and the components of the oral composition were dispersed to some extent, although there was some unevenness in the dispersion. 4: No settling or floating was observed, and the components of the oral composition were dispersed, although there was some unevenness in dispersion. 5: No settling or floating was observed, and the components of the oral composition were uniformly dispersed.

[0043] [Table 1]

[0044] [Table 2]

[0045] [Table 3]

[0046] [Table 4]

[0047] [Table 5]

[0048] As shown in Table 1, when either component (A) or component (B) was used alone, precipitation of insoluble matter was observed (Comparative Examples 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8), but when the two were mixed, the dispersibility was improved (Examples 1 to 8). Furthermore, when the oral composition was formulated in a powder or granule form and then mixed with water, and when the oral composition was formulated in a paste form and then mixed with water, the dispersibility was improved compared to when (B) was not included, as in Examples 1 to 8.

[0049] In addition, when the component (A) was replaced with citric acid (component (a)), which is the main component of the component (A), no dispersibility was obtained even when it was coexisted with the component (B) (Comparative Examples 3, 5, 7, and 9). In addition, when the component (B) was replaced with a functional component (component (b)) having the same immune improving effect as the component (B), no improvement in dispersibility was obtained (Comparative Examples 10 to 19, 21 to 26, and 28 to 29).

Claims

1. An oral composition comprising (A) a plum juice concentrate and (B) an ingredient selected from the group consisting of chlorella, saw palmetto extract, α-lipoic acid, and β-carotene.

2. The oral composition according to claim 1, wherein the component (B) is contained in an amount of 0.01 to 43 parts by dry weight per 1 part by dry weight of the component (A).

3. The oral composition according to claim 1, wherein the ratio of the component (A) is 2 to 99 parts by dry weight per 100 parts by dry weight of the oral composition.

4. The oral composition according to claim 1, wherein the ratio of said component (B) is 1 to 98 parts by dry weight per 100 parts by dry weight of said oral composition.

5. 2. The oral composition according to claim 1, wherein the content of the component (A) when ingested is 0.01 to 15% by dry weight.

6. 2. The oral composition according to claim 1, wherein the content of said component (B) when ingested is 0.1 to 10% by weight on a dry basis.

7. 10. The oral composition of claim 1, which is a powdered beverage, a granulated beverage, or a concentrated beverage.

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