Development of a Novel, Soothing Tissue Incorporating Phase-change Materials

By: Jeffery R. Seidling; Scott W. Wenzel; Corey Cunningham, PhD; and Helen K. Moen, Kimberly-Clark Corp.

Posted: February 1, 2013, from the February 2013 issue of Cosmetics & Toiletries.

During normal, infrequent, everyday use, tissue products are inherently nonirritating. However, with allergies, a cold or the flu, frequent and repetitive use can lead to inflammation of the nasal area,¹ including redness, swelling, pain and heat.² Several finished products had already been made commercially available to help prevent or alleviate wiping-induced discomfort or to soothe consumers via aromatherapy; for example, softer, lotion-infused or mentholated tissues. While these technologies help to minimize and prevent further nasal irritation and comfort the consumer, none had targeted the heat and redness associated with an already inflamed nose.

This presented a market need for which the authors sought to develop a new, more soothing tissue that actively cools a hot and sore nose upon contact. However, accomplishing such a task posed several formulating challenges ranging from ingredient selection and practical application, to efficacy and safety testing, among others. Described herein are the steps taken to find a practical solution to this product challenge.

This is only an excerpt of the full article that appeared in Cosmetics & Toiletries, but you can purchase the full-text version.