Natural mosquito repellent laundry products

Abstract

An infused dryer sheet and fabric detergent containing one or more essential oil derivatives to infuse clothing with a safe insect repellent, directed especially towards disease carrying mosquitoes, the dryer sheets and detergent containing an essential oil mixture safe for clothing worn by pregnant women and other human beings and pets.

Claims

1. An insect repellent mixture using natural product oil derivatives provided in laundry product infused within clothing during laundering, the insect repellent repelling disease carrying insect, primarily mosquitos, for all persons including pregnant women and small children who are high risk for viruses, other diseases and commonly carried blood borne pathogens, said insect repellent laundry product comprising: a dryer sheet made of fabric, textile or thin sheet material that can withstand the heat of a dryer and the tumbling action of the clothing within the dryer during at least one drying cycle without deformation, damage or decay and also the ability to absorb the mixture and present the mixture is dry or moist sheets; at least one essential oil selected from a list of essential oils including citronella, lemongrass, lemon eucalyptus, lavender, clove, basil, peppermint, rosemary and common eucalyptus in a concentration between 1.5% and 7% by weight; vanillin to prolong the release of the essential oil throughout a drying cycle; and low fragrance vinegar or other natural softening agent to soften the clothing during said drying cycle.

2. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of peppermint oil by weight.

3. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of rosemary oil by weight.

4. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of eucalyptus oil by weight.

5. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of basil oil by weight.

6. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of clove oil by weight.

7. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of lemongrass oil by weight.

8. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of lemon eucalyptus oil by weight.

9. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 7.0% concentration of lavender oil by weight.

10. The insect repellent mixture of claim 1, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 7.0% concentration of citronella oil by weight.

11. An insect repellent mixture using natural product oil derivatives provided in laundry product infused within clothing during laundering, the insect repellent repelling disease carrying insect, primarily mosquitos, for all persons including pregnant women and small children who are high risk for viruses, other diseases and commonly carried blood borne pathogens, said insect repellent laundry product comprising: a detergent for washing clothing in a washing machine; at least one essential oil selected from a list of essential oils including citronella, lemongrass, lemon eucalyptus, lavender, clove, basil, peppermint, rosemary and common eucalyptus in a concentration between 1.5% and 7% by weight; and a quantity of witch hazel extract, also known as winterbloom.

12. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of peppermint oil by weight.

13. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of rosemary oil by weight.

14. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of eucalyptus oil by weight.

15. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of basil oil by weight.

16. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 1.5% concentration of clove oil by weight.

17. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of lemongrass oil by weight.

18. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 3.0% concentration of lemon eucalyptus oil by weight.

19. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 7.0% concentration of lavender oil by weight.

20. The insect repellent mixture of claim 11, wherein said at least one essential oil is a 7.0% concentration of citronella oil by weight.

Description

IV. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0012] An insect repellent mixture using natural product oil derivatives is provided in laundry products, including dryer sheets and detergents, to be infused within clothing to repel disease carrying insects, primarily mosquitos, for all persons including pregnant women and small children, who are high risk for those viruses and other diseases and blood borne pathogens. The insect repellent mixture provides one or more natural oils within the mixture known and proven by testing to repel mosquitoes and also other ingredients suitable for use in dryer sheets, detergents and other laundry products.

[0013] Fabric sheets are provided commencing with a chosen delivery matrix, usually a dimensional sheet, with the insect repellent mixture infused into the matrix. The matrix may be any fabric, textile or thin sheet material that can withstand the heat of a dryer and the tumbling action of the clothing within the dryer during at least one drying cycle without deformation, damage or decay and also the ability to absorb the mixture and present the mixture is dry or moist sheets. A suitable matrix for purposes of the product possessing the appropriate characteristics described above was found to be a non-woven, non-fusible interfacing used in quilting, or other thin sheet materials already used in the dryer sheet industry. The matrix is not necessarily part of the patentable subject matter of the invention if indeed using a product already in use in the field of art for use during the drying phase. In the detergent product, the detergent may be any product used in the laundry industry, again, the detergent not being the subject matter of the immediate invention, but the matrix for delivery of the inventive subject matter to clothing during the wash phase.

[0014] The first ingredient is the insect repellent mixture is the insect repelling essential oil, chosen from a list including citronella, lemongrass, lemon eucalyptus, lavender, clove, basil, peppermint, rosemary and common eucalyptus. The preferred essential oils would be introduced as colorless extract oils ranging from a 1.5% solution to a 7% solution by weight, depending on the subject essential oil derivative. During testing, the most effective concentration of oil was determined for each essential oil, the gained data interpreted using the World Health Organization formula for determination of the effective spatial repellency of oils, as follows:

[00001]$\frac{G-R}{G+R}\frac{G+R}{\mathrm{All}}$

[0015] The mathematic result is rendered as a Spatial Activity Index value or SAI. The trials used samples of the essential oil derivatives at variable concentrations for 1 minute and 5 minute trials using live female mosquitoes of the variety Aedes aegypti mosquitos in a cage, with volunteers holding swatches pre-washed in the subject detergent formula mixtures, individually and combined. The SAI effectiveness is grades by a higher index number determined in direct proportion to the mosquito repellent quality of the subject sample. The following data was obtained.

TABLE-US-00001 Oil 1.5% @ SAI 3.0% @ SAI 7% @ SAI citronella 0.473 0.667 0.687 lemon eucalyptus 0.580 0.680 0.347 clove 0.667 0.493 0.553 basil 0.627 0.587 0.400 peppermint 0.827 0.720 0.720 lemongrass 0.513 0.587 0.520 rosemary 0.733 0.620 0.700 common eucalyptus 0.567 0.707 0.353 lavender 0.407 0.520 0.607 peppermint (3%) + N/A 0.387 N/A eucalypts (3%) rosemary (3%) + N/A 0.293 N/A eucalyptus (3%) lemongrass (3%) + N/A 0.493 N/A eucalyptus (3%)

[0016] From the results gained above, a determination was made that the combination of oils proved to lessen the repellent quality of the essential oils, and that the effectiveness of the repellent essential oils by concentration were dependent on the particular essential oil. Therefore, the conclusion was that peppermint and rosemary, at 1.5% concentration by weight were most effective, but that the eucalyptus (3%), basil (1.5%), clove (1.5%), lemongrass (3%), lemon eucalyptus (3%), lavender (7%) and citronella (7%), proved to have effective repellent traits, effective being defined by the test protocol as above 0.50 SAI. The combination of oils tended to reduce the repellent qualities of the essential oils. Further testing would be required to determine and discover more synergistic effects between most of the effective oils.

[0017] It is also determined in the dryer sheet embodiment that the addition of vanillin or other prolonging agent, prolongs the effectiveness of the essential oil and enhances the release of the essential oil throughout the drying cycle, infusing the essential oils into the clothing more efficiently. The addition of natural vinegar or other natural fabric softener enhances the fabric softening quality of the dryer sheet. Therefore, the most efficient mixture for infusion into a dryer sheet would include:

at least one essential oil concentration having an SAI index above 0.500+a quantity of vanillin (vanilla oil extract)+a small quantity of low fragrant vinegar+witch hazel extract=infusing mixture

As indicated above, the variable in the mixture's basic formula would be the type of essential oil and its relative concentration.

[0018] As with the detergent additive, witch hazel is introduced with an essential oil to reduce the chance of skin irritation caused by the essential oil, since the detergent is saturated directly into the clothing during the wash cycle and can vary as to how much of the mixture is actually contained within the clothing, as well as how the clothing is finished (line drying versus machine drying; drying cycle selection with variable heat, time and tumble intensity). The vanillin and vinegar recommended in the dryer sheet formula is not used in the detergent embodiment. Thus, the most efficient mixture for inclusion in a detergent would include:

at least one essential oil concentration having an SAI index above 0.500+a quantity of witch hazel extract+a detergent laundry soap=inclusion mixture

Once again, the variable in the mixture's basic detergent formula would be the type of essential oil and its relative concentration. Witch hazel, otherwise known as winterbloom, is a plant extract added to reduce the risk of skin irritation and provide other beneficial effects to the skin. Witch hazel can help reduce acne and other skin disorders, shrink blood vessels, promote fast wound healing, sooth itching, and refresh and rejuvenate the skin. It has gained notoriety in barber shops as an aftershave lotion, delivered as witch hazel water, mixed with water or alcohol.

[0019] While the natural mosquito repellent laundry products been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.