the skin - protecting alkalinity - controlling composition according to the invention comprises one or more high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides selected from the group comprising pectin esters , esterified cellulose ethers , esterified hydroxyethylcellulose , esterified carboxymethylcellulose , esterified guar gum , esterified cationic guar gum , esterified hydroxypropyl guar gum , starch esters , and polymerized sugar esters . a high de carboxylic acid polysaccharide provides for a rapid ph - drop due to the low amount of free carboxylic acid groups present . thus , if a rapid ph - drop is needed , a high de carboxylic acid polysaccharide should be used . this fact can be utilized in a range of products intended to be applied to the skin of humans or animals . uses include but are not limited to lotions , creams , foundations , face masks , hair care products , genital lotions , deodorants , ostomy products , feminine hygiene products , laundry products , bath salt products , soap products , fragrance products , lotionized tissue products , and shaving products . further , such pectin can be used in similar products to treat animals . in a preferred embodiment according to the invention , said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharide is a pectin ester , preferably a pectin ester of aliphatic , arylaliphatic , cycloaliphatic or heterocyclic alcohols , more preferably an ester of methanol , ethanol , propanol or isopropanol , and most preferably an ester of methanol . the advantage of using methanol esters of pectin is the natural occurrence of such ester . however , without being bound by theory , methyl esters of pectin are more prone to liberate the alcohol part thereof during de - esterification . esters of pectin with higher alcohols are not as prone to alkaline de - esterification . in a still more preferred embodiment of the invention , said pectin is of a molecular weight in the range from about 5 , 000 to about 140 , 000 , preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 125 , 000 , most preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 40 , 000 . as demonstrated in example i below , the molecular weight of pectin has no influence on the alkali consumption or on the ph drop encountered . however , by adjusting the molecular weight of the pectin it is possible to adjust the amount of pectin , which may be dissolved or suspended in a final product . thus , as disclosed in more detail in example 11 , a lower molecular weight pectin is easier to dissolve and the viscosity of the resulting pectin - containing solution is lower than in a corresponding higher molecular weight - containing pectin . this fact can be utilized to obtain a relatively highly concentrated pectin - solution having suitably low viscosity , e . g . for use in fabric - treating products . the pectin having a molecular weight below about 40 , 000 can be made at concentrations above about 10 % without causing unacceptable high viscosity . such pectin could be manufactured and marketed as a concentrated solution with a pectin concentration in excess of 10 %. alternatively , the possibility of making such pectin solution in concentrations above about 10 % makes spray - drying of such solutions economically feasible . the degree of esterification indicates the average de of any given polysaccharide . by controlling the distribution of ester groups along the polysaccharide chain to obtain either a random or a block - wise distribution of ester groups , it is possible to obtain a locally higher or lower de polysaccharide . as demonstrated in example 3 , the alkali consumption of a pectin having a block - wise ester group distribution is the same as the alkali consumption of a corresponding pectin having a random ester group distribution . however , the ph - drop of the two pectins is considerably larger for the block - wise esterified pectin , presumably because such pectin will act as a pectin with a higher average de . thus , by treating a block - wise esterified pectin with a polygalacturarase , which splits the pectin at non - esterified sites , a lower molecular weight pectin may be obtained having an increased de . in an alternative embodiment of the composition according to the invention , the ester groups of the polysaccharide thereof are thus distributed in a block - wise fashion . in another embodiment of the composition according to the invention , the ester groups of the polysaccharide are distributed in a random fashion . in another preferred embodiment according to the invention , the skin - protecting alkalinity controlling composition comprises a mixture of at least one high de - carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 70 % to about 100 %, more preferably from about 80 % to about 100 %, and at least one low de - carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 5 to about 70 %, more preferably from about 5 to about 40 %, most preferably from 10 to about 35 %. a carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a relatively low de provides for a large alkali consumption capacity or buffer capacity . an advantage of a higher buffer capacity is the ability of the pectin to neutralize an initial high concentration of alkali . this is an advantage particularly when fabrics are insufficiently depleted for alkaline washing powder . thus , by combining a low de and a high de carboxylic acid polysaccharide , an initial alkali consumption buffering can be obtained succeeded by a ph - reduction . in a preferred embodiment according to the invention , any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de carboxylic acid polysaccharides is selected from the group comprising pectin esters , alginic acid esters , esterified cellulose ethers , esterified hydroxyethylcellulose , esterified carboxymethylcellulose , esterified guar gum , esterified cationic guar gum , esterified hydrocypropyl guar gum , starch esters , and polymerized sugar esters . in a particular embodiment according to the invention , any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de carboxylic acid polysaccharides is a pectin ester , preferably a pectin ester of aliphatic , arylaliphatic , cycloaliphatic or heterocyclic alcohols , more preferably an ester of methanol , ethanol , propanol or isopropanol , and most preferably an ester of methanol . in a more particular embodiment according to the invention , any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de carboxylic acid polysaccharides is a pectin having a molecular weight in the range from about 5 , 000 to about 140 , 000 , preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 125 , 000 , most preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 40 , 000 . in an alternative embodiment according to the invention , any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de carboxylic acid polysaccharides is an esterified alginic acid . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , any of said esterified alginic acids is an alginic acid ester of aliphatic , aromatic , araliphatic , alicyclic and heterocyclic alcohols , including esters deriving from substituted alcohols such as esters of bivalent aliphatic alcohols , preferably ethylene glycol or propylene glycol alginate . u . s . pat . no . 5 , 416 , 205 discloses suitable alginic acid derivatives , and the reference is enclosed herewith in its entirety . in a further embodiment according to the invention , the ester groups of any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de polysaccharides are distributed in a block - wise fashion . in another embodiment according to the invention , the ester groups of any of said high de carboxylic acid polysaccharides and said low de polysaccharides are distributed in a random fashion . in another embodiment of the invention , a composition comprising at least one carboxylic acid polysaccharide selected from the group comprising pectin esters , alginic acid esters , esterified cellulose ethers , esterified hydroxyethylcellulose , esterified carboxymethyl - cellulose , esterified guar gum , esterified cationic guar gum , esterified hydropropyl guar gum , starch esters , and polymerized sugar esters is used for skin protection and / or alkalinity control . in a preferred embodiment according to the invention , said carboxylic acid polysaccharide is a pectin ester , preferably a pectin ester of aliphatic , arylaliphatic , cycloaliphatic or heterocyclic alcohols , more preferably an ester of methanol , ethanol , propanol or isopropanol , and most preferably an ester of methanol . in another embodiment according to the invention , said carboxylic acid polysaccharide is a pectin having a molecular weight in the range from about 5 , 000 to about 140 , 000 , preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 125 , 000 , most preferably in the range from about 10 , 000 to about 40 , 000 . in another embodiment according to the invention , said carboxylic acid polysaccharide is an esterified alginic acid . in another embodiment according to the invention , said esterified alginic acid is selected from the group comprising alginic acid esters of aliphatic , aromatic , araliphatic , alicyclic and heterocyclic alcohols , including esters deriving from substituted alcohols such as esters of bivalent aliphatic alcohols , preferably ethylene glycol alginate or propylene glycol alginate . in another embodiment according to the invention , the ester groups of said polysaccharide are distributed in a block - wise fashion . in another embodiment according to the invention , the ester groups of said polysaccharide are distributed in a random fashion . in another embodiment of the use according to the invention , at least one of said carboxylic acid polysaccharide ( s ) is a high de carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 70 % to about 100 %, more preferably from about 80 % to about 100 %. in another embodiment of the use according to the invention , at least one of said carboxylic acid polysaccharide ( s ) is a low de carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 5 to about 70 %, more preferably from about 5 % to about 40 %, and most preferably from about 10 % to about 35 %. in another embodiment according to the invention of the use of a composition , said composition comprises a mixture of at least one of carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 70 % to about 100 %, more preferably from about 80 % to about 100 %; and at least one carboxylic acid polysaccharide having a degree of esterification ( de ) in the range from about 5 to about 70 %, more preferably from about 5 % to about 40 %, and most preferably from about 10 % to about 35 %. the composition according to the invention is suitable for use in personal care products . in a preferred embodiment , said products are for use on human skin . in another embodiment , said products are for use on animal skin . in a particular embodiment according to the invention , the skin protecting alkalinity - controlling composition is used in a product selected from the group consisting of skin creams , skin lotions , deodorant products , fragrance products , hair care products , shaving products , soap products , and bath salt products . in another embodiment according to the invention , the skin protecting alkalinity - controlling composition is used in a product selected from the group consisting of female hygiene products and diapers . a particular advantage of the present composition is the fact that they are capable of controlling the alkalinity of the surface , to which they are applied , for a prolonged time . as demonstrated in examples 5 and 8 , the carboxylic acid polysaccharides are capable of controlling the alkalinity at multiple challenges of alkalinity . this fact can be utilized in e . g . deodorant products , diapers or female hygiene products , which are repeatedly exposed to sweat that is decomposed by micro - organisms to alkaline substances . thus , a prolonged effective alkalinity control may be obtained by the products according to the present invention . in another embodiment according to the invention , the skin - protecting alkalinity - controlling composition is used in a product selected from the group consisting of ostomy products and wound care products . in ostomy products a low solubility polysaccharide , such as a low solubility pectin , should be used , since the ostomy product should remain insoluble for a longer period of time during flushing by body fluids . in this particular case a combination of a low de and a low ph pectin would provide for a longer durability of the ostomy product during use . in a particular embodiment such low solubility low de pectin should be combined with a higher solubility pectin having a higher de to maintain a skin ph closer to the optimum skin ph of 5 . 5 . in still another embodiment according to the invention , the skin - protecting alkalinity - controlling composition is used in a product selected from the group consisting of lotionized tissue products , fabric treating products , and laundry rinse products . pectin is extracted using the following steps . the degree of esterification was controlled in the range of about 76 % to about 30 % through shorter or longer extraction times . the process is as follows : 1 . 15 litres of water was heated to 70 ° c . in a stainless steel , jacketed vessel having a volume of 18 litres and equipped with a stirrer . 2 . 500 g dried citrus peel or dried beet cossets was added to the water , and the ph is adjusted to 1 . 7 - 1 . 8 by addition of 62 % nitric acid . 3 . extraction was carried out at 70 ° c . for 2 - 24 hours depending on the desired degree of esterification while stirring . 4 . after extraction , the content of the vessel was filtered on a bücher funnel using diatomaceous earth as filter aid . 5 . the filtered extract was ion exchanged while stirring by adding 50 ml resin ( amberlite sril , produced by rohm & amp ; haas ) per litre of filtered extract . while stirring , the ion exchange was carried out during 20 minutes while stirring . 6 . the ion exchanged filtrate was filtered on a bücher funnel equipped with a cloth . 7 . the filtered ion exchanged filtrate was precipitated by adding it to three parts of 80 % isopropanol while stirring gently . 8 . the precipitate was collected on nylon cloth and pressed by hand to remove as much isopropanol as possible . 9 . the hand pressed precipitate was washed once in 60 % isopropanol and then dried at 70 ° c . in a drying cabinet at atmospheric pressure . 10 . after drying , the pectin was milled . 1 . the pressed precipitate made according to the procedure under a ) point 8 was suspended in 60 % isopropyl alcohol at 5 ° c . 2 . concentrated naoh solution was added and the slurry was stirred for about one hour . the amount of naoh is calculated to produce the desired de . 3 . the pectin solid was separated on nylon cloth , and washed twice in 60 % isopropyl alcohol at ph 4 . 4 . the pectin solid was separated on nylon cloth , dried at 70 ° c . and milled . 2 . after cooling the solution to about 25 ° c ., ph was adjusted to 5 . 50 with nh 3 . 3 . samples of the cold solution were treated with pectin lyase in concentrations ranging from 0 to 1300 micro litres per 10 litres of pectin solution . 4 . each sample was treated with its enzyme preparation for 1 hour at 25 ° c . while stirring . 5 . after treatment , the ph was adjusted to 2 . 50 and the samples were heated at 80 ° c . for 10 minutes to inactivate the enzyme . 6 . the samples were lastly precipitated in isopropyl alcohol , washed in isopropyl alcohol , dried and milled . 1 . 50 g . pectin as prepared under a ) was added 2 . 5 g . dimethylaminopyridine , 100 ml . methanol and 100 ml . heptane in suitable flask and the mixture was cooled to minus 4 ° c . 2 . 15 ml thionylchloride was over a period of 10 minutes added as drops to the mixture . 3 . over about 24 hours , the mixture was allowed to heat to about 21 ° c . 4 . the solid was filtered , washed twice with first 60 % isopropyl alcohol and secondly with 100 % isopropyl alcohol . 5 . the solid was dried at about 70 ° c . 1 . pectin extracted according to a ) was dissolved in about 80 ° c . ion exchanged water to form a 2 % solution . 2 . the solution was cooled to 45 ° c . and ph was adjusted to 4 . 5 with nh 3 . 3 . samples were added 2 - 4 % of enzyme preparation while stirring : plant esterase ( collopulin ) for a block wise do - esterification and bacterial esterase ( rheozyme ) for random de - esterification . 4 . the degree of esterification was monitored through titration with 2 % nh 3 at constant ph of 4 . 5 . 5 . after de - esterification , decreasing the ph to 2 . 5 with hno 3 and subsequently heating the sample to 80 ° c . for 10 minutes inactivated the enzyme . 6 . the sample was precipitated in isopropyl alcohol , washed in isopropyl alcohol , dried and milled . for this , high performance size exclusion chromatography ( hpsec ) with triple detection is used . a pectin sample is fractionated according to hydrodynamic volume , using size exclusion chromatography . after separation , the sample is analysed by a triple detector system , consisting of a refractive index ( ri ) detector , a right angle laser light scattering ( ralls ) detector and a differential viscometer . information from these detectors leads to determination of molecular weight ( mw ) and intrinsic viscosity ( iv ). the mark - houwink factor is calculated using the molecular weight and intrinsic viscosity as obtained using this method . 1 . pump model 515 , waters , hedehusene , denmark . 2 . degasser , gynkotek , polygen scandinavia , århus , denmark . 3 . column oven , waters , hedehusene , denmark . 4 . as - 3500 auto sampler , with sample preparation module , dionex denmark , rødovre , denmark . 5 . 3 linear mixed bed columns , tsk - gmpwxl , supelco , bellefonte pa ., usa . 6 . liquid phase : 0 . 3 m lithium acetate buffer ph 4 . 8 , fluka chemie a g , buchs , switzerland . 7 . dual detector , ri , viscometry , model 250 , viscotek , houston , tex ., usa . 8 . ralls model 600 , viscotek , houston , tex ., usa . approximately 2 mg of the sample is weighed into a 2000 μl vial . the sample is then dissolved in the auto sampler , by following schedule : 8 μl of ethanol is added , then 1300 μl of acetate buffer ( 0 . 3 m , ph 4 . 8 ), sample is heated to 75 ° c . and mixed for 9 . 9 minutes . 300 μl of the preparation is diluted with 900 μl of acetate buffer , then mixing for 9 . 9 minutes . sample is left at ambient temperature for 20 minutes . 100 μl of the sample is injected with a 100 μl full loop and flow rate is 0 . 8 ml / min . two detectors are present in line , a right angle laser light scattering ( ralls ) detector ( viscotek ) and a dual detector consisting of a refractive index detector and a viscometer ( viscotek ). the specific refractive index increment ( dn / dc ) value for pectin is set at 0 . 144 . data from detectors are processed by tri - sec software ( viscotek ). determination of degree of esterification ( de ) and galacturonic acid ( ga ) in non - amide pectin this method pertains to the determination of % de and % ga in pectin , which does not contain amide and acetate ester . 1 . analytical balance 2 . glass beaker , 250 ml , 5 pieces 3 . measuring glass , 100 ml 4 . vacuum pump 5 . suction flask 6 . glass filter crucible no . 1 ( büchner funnel and filter paper ) 7 . stop watch 8 . test tube 9 . drying cabinet at 105 ° c . 10 . dessicator 11 . magnetic stirrer and magnets 12 . burette ( 10 ml , accuracy ± 0 . 05 ml ) 13 . pipettes ( 20 ml : 2 pieces , 10 ml : 1 piece ) 14 . ph - meter / autoburette or phenolphtalein 1 . carbon dioxide - free water ( deionized water ) 2 . isopropanol ( ipa ), 60 % and 100 % 3 . hydrochloride ( hcl ), 0 . 5 n and fuming 37 % 4 . sodium hydroxide ( naoh ), 5 . silver nitrate ( agno 3 ), 0 . 1 n 6 . nitric acid ( hno 3 ), 3 n 7 . indicator , phenolphtalein , 0 . 1 % procedure — determination of % de and % ga ( acid alcohol : 100 ml 60 % ipa + 5 ml hcl fuming 37 %): 1 . weigh 2 . 0000 g pectin in a 250 ml glass beaker . 2 . add 100 ml acid alcohol and stir on a magnetic stirrer for 10 min . 3 . filtrate through a dried , weighed glass filter crucible . 4 . rinse the beaker completely with 6 × 15 ml acid alcohol . 5 . wash with 60 % ipa until the filtrate is chloride - free ( approximately 500 ml ). 6 . wash with 20 ml 100 % ipa . 7 . dry the sample for 2½ hours at 105 ° c . 8 . weigh the crucible after drying and cooling in desiccator . 9 . weigh accurately 0 . 4000 g of the sample in a 250 ml glass beaker . 10 . weigh two samples for double determination . deviation between double determinations must max . be 1 . 5 % absolute . if deviation exceeds 1 . 5 % the test must be repeated . 11 . wet the pectin with approx . 2 ml 100 % ipa and add approx . 100 ml carbon di - oxide - free , deionized water while stirring on a magnetic stirrer . ( chloride test on ash - free and moisture - free basis : transfer approximately 10 ml filtrate to a test tube , add approximately 3 ml 3 n hno 3 , and add a few drops of agno 3 . the filtrate will be chloride - free if the solution is clear , otherwise there will be a precipitation of silver chloride .) the sample is now ready for titration , either by means of an indicator or by using a ph - meter / autoburette . procedure — determination of % de only ( acid alcohol : 100 ml 60 % ipa + 5 ml hcl fuming 37 %): 1 . weigh 2 . 00 g pectin in a 250 ml glass beaker . 2 . add 100 ml acid alcohol and stir on a magnetic stirrer for 10 minutes . 3 . filtrate through a büchner funnel with filter paper . 4 . rinse the beaker with 90 ml acid alcohol . 5 . wash with 1000 ml 60 % ipa . 6 . wash with approximately 30 ml 100 % ipa . 7 . dry the sample for approximately 15 minutes on büchner funnel with vacuum suction . 8 . weigh approximately 0 . 40 g of the sample in a 250 ml glass beaker . 9 . weigh two samples for double determination . deviation between double determinations must max . be 1 . 5 % absolute . if deviation exceeds 1 . 5 % the test must be repeated . 10 . wet the pectin with approximately 2 ml 100 % ipa and add approx . 100 ml de - ionized water while stirring on a magnetic stirrer . the sample is now ready for titration , either by means of an indicator or by using a ph - meter / autoburette . note : it is very important that samples with % de & lt ; 10 % are titrated very slowly , as the sample will only dissolve slowly during titration . 1 . add 5 drops of phenolphtalein indicator and titrate with 0 . 1 n naoh until change of color ( record it as v 1 titer ). 2 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n naoh while stirring . let stand for exactly 15 min . when standing the sample must be covered with foil . 3 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n hcl while stirring and stir until the color disappears . 4 . add 3 drops of phenolphtalein and titrate with 0 . 1 n naoh until change of color ( record it as v 2 titer ). 1 . add 5 drops phenolphtalein to 100 ml carbon dioxide - free or dionized water ( same type as used for the sample ), and titrate in a 250 ml glass beaker with 0 . 1 n naoh until change of color ( 1 - 2 drops ). 2 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n naoh and let the sample stand untouched for exactly 15 minutes . when standing the sample must be covered with foil . 3 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n hcl and 3 drops phenolphtalein , and titrate until change of color with 0 . 1 n naoh ( record it as b 1 ). maximum amount allowed for titration is 1 ml 0 . 1 n naoh . if titrating with more than 1 ml , 0 . 5 n hcl must be diluted with a small amount of deionized water . if the sample has shown change of color on addition of 0 . 5 n hcl , 0 . 5 n naoh must be diluted with a small amount of carbon dioxide - free water . maximum allowed dilution with water is such that the solutions are between 0 . 52 and 0 . 48 n . using autoburette type abu 80 the following settings may be applied : 1 . titrate with 0 . 1 n naoh to ph 8 . 5 ( record the result as v 1 titer ). 2 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n naoh while stirring , and let the sample stand without stir - ring for exactly 15 minutes . when standing the sample must be covered with foil . 3 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n hcl while stirring and stir until ph is constant . 4 . subsequently , titrate with 0 . 1 n naoh to ph 8 . 5 ( record the result as v 2 titer ). 1 . titrate 100 ml carbon dioxide - free or deionized ( same type as used for the sample ) water to ph 8 . 5 with 0 . 1 n naoh ( 1 - 2 drops ). 2 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n naoh while stirring and let the blind test sample stand without stirring for exactly 15 min . when standing the sample must be covered with foil . 3 . add 20 . 00 ml 0 . 5 n hcl while stirring , and stir until ph is constant . 4 . titrate to ph 8 . 5 with 0 . 1 n naoh ( record it as b 1 ). maximum amount allowed for titration is 1 ml 0 . 1 n naoh . if titrating with more than 1 ml , 0 . 5 n hcl must be diluted with a small amount of deionized water . if ph does not fall to below 8 . 5 on addition of 0 . 5 n hcl , 0 . 5 n naoh must be diluted with a small amount of carbon dioxide - free water . maximum allowed dilution with water is such that the dilutions are between 0 . 52 and 0 . 48 n . % de ( degree of esterification )={( v 2 − b 1 )× 100 }/ v t ( 194 . 1 : molecular weight for ga n : corrected normality for 0 . 1 n naoh used for titration ( e . g . 0 . 1002 n ) 400 : weight in mg of washed and dried sample for titration ) 1 . 1 g . pectin was dissolved in 100 g . deionized water at 70 ° c . and at 20 ° c . 2 . the solution was placed in a thermostatically controlled water bath and continuously stirred . 3 . 0 . 1 m naoh was added to a ph of between 9 and 10 . 4 . the ph was recorded as a function of time 1 . 2 g . pectin was dissolved in 200 g . deionized water at 70 ° c . and at 20 ° c . 2 . the solution was placed in a thermostatically controlled water bath at 25 ° c . and continuously stirred . 3 . 0 . 1 m naoh was added to the solution and ph recorded as a function of added 0 . 1 m naoh . propylene glycol alginate — quantitative determination of the ester groups is carried out by the saponification method described on pages 169 - 172 of “ quantitative organic analysis via functional groups ”, 4th edition , john wiley and sons publication . 1 . kelcoloid o manufactured by isp technologies , inc . esterification : high — about 85 %. 2 . manucol ester er / k manufactured by isp technologies , inc . esterification : high — about 80 %. 3 . kelcoloid hvf manufactured by isp technologies , inc . esterification : medium — about 55 % since the ph is low , the lotion can be preserved with conventional food - grade preservatives . 1 . palmitate and emulsifier were mixed and heated to 75 ° c . in order to melt the emulsifier . 2 . pectin and preservatives were dispersed in distilled water and heated to 75 ° c . 3 . the hot oil phase was added to the hot water phase while stirring on magnetic stirrer . 4 . the mix was cooled to about 30 ° c . on cooling bath while stirring and fill into appropriate container . 1 . palmitate and emulsifier were mixed and heated to 75 ° c . in order to melt the emulsifier . 2 . pectin was dispersed into the hot melt . pectin is insoluble in the oil phase and consequently easy to disperse therein without formation of lumps . 3 . preservatives were dissolved in distilled water and the solution was heated to 75 ° c . 4 . the hot oil phase was added to the hot water phase while stirring on magnetic stirrer . the mix was cooled to about 30 ° c . on cooling bath while stirring and fill into appropriate container . 1 . a piece of cotton was cut to fit into a petri dish . 2 . the cotton piece was soaked in a pectin solution in distilled water and stirred on magnetic stirrer for about 5 minutes . 3 . the wet cloth was hand - pressed and placed in a petri dish . 4 . the cloth was dried over night in an oven at 50 ° c . 5 . the dried cloth was wetted with 2 ml 0 . 001 m naoh . 6 . a piece of indicator paper ( ph in the range 1 - 11 ) was placed on the cloth . 7 . the color change of the indicator paper over time was recorded . ( note : this test is indicative , only . it is not possible to read the ph accurately .) the invention will now be described in more detail with respect to the following , specific , non - limiting examples . five samples of different molecular weight , but with similar de made from dried lemon peel were titrated and the ph drop over time recorded for samples dissolved at 70 ° c . and 20 ° c ., respectively . the ph drop was measured at 30 - 32 ° c . titration was done using 0 . 1008 m naoh . the comment “ unstable ” refers to the ph - meter , which at high ph values showed an unstable reading . fig1 . 1 shows that the molecular weight of pectin has no influence on the alkali consumption . the data in fig1 . 2 do not suggest a change in the ph - drop resulting from a change in molecular weight . in practice , this means that a ph controlling preparation made from pectin can be made thick ( high molecular weight ) or thin ( low molecular weight ) or basically with any viscosity between the two extremes . in addition , if the alkali consumption is to be increased , a low molecular weight pectin preparation makes it possible to increase the concentration of pectin without making the alkali consuming preparation too viscous . fig1 . 3 shows that dissolution temperature does not change the drop in ph . thus , irrespective of the molecular weight , pectin preparation for controlling ph can be made either hot or cold . eight samples were prepared with different degree of esterification ranging from about 9 to 93 %. the samples were made from dried lemon peel . all were titrated and the ph drop over time recorded for samples dissolved at 70 ° c . and 20 ° c ., respectively . the ph drop was measured at 30 - 32 ° c . titration was done using 0 . 1008 m naoh . the comment “ unstable ” refers to the ph - meter , which at high ph values showed an unstable reading . fig2 . 1 shows that one pectin is characterized by a higher starting ph than the rest . conventionally , pectin is neutralized with an alkali metal base to a ph in the range 3 - 4 or even higher . this is mainly in order to preserve the pectin , but it also has an impact on the solubility of the pectin . however , if one moves the curve for de = 9 . 6 % upwards to connect with the other curves , the picture becomes clear : with increasing de and consequently decreasing galacturonic acid , the pectin can consume less alkali . thus , if pectin is used to neutralize alkali , the degree of esterification and the starting ph should be as low as possible . to further elaborate on this point , i define buffer capacity as ml . 0 . 1 m naoh required to increase the ph by 1 ph unit , calculated from the part of the titration curve , which is steepest . thus , the approximate buffer capacities as calculated from fig2 . 1 are : fig2 . 2 show a dramatic increase in the ph - drop as the degree of esterification is increased . fig2 . 3 shows the same dramatic influence of de even when the pectin is dissolved at 20 ° c . the figure shows that at the high de , the ph is eventually decreased below 5 . 5 . these results are compiled in fig2 . 4 , in which the ph drop has been followed for the first up to about 130 minutes . it is evident that the ph - drop occurs to the same extent whether the pectin solution is made hot or cold . for de = 93 . 4 %, time to reach ph = 8 is 2 minutes , for de = 71 % it takes 12 minutes , for de = 34 . 4 % the time is 35 minutes and for de = 9 . 6 % it takes 130 minutes . in order to reach ph = 7 , the difference is even bigger . pectin with a de = 71 is about 9 times slower than pectin with de = 93 . 4 , and pectin with de lower than 71 % are slower than a factor 10 compared to pectin with de = 93 . 4 . thus , if one needs to obtain a rapid ph decrease as a result of alkali generation , pectin with as high a de as possible is preferred . if , on the other hand , the need calls for slower reduction of ph , then a lower de would be preferred . selecting pectin of a specific de makes it possible to reduce the ph at a specific rate . another aspect is to combine pectin preparations of different de . for example , one might combine a low de pectin and a high de pectin to achieve initial alkali consumption or buffer capacity and to provide ph reduction , when the buffer capacity is used . two samples were made from dried lemon peel . one was de - esterified with a bacterial pectin esterase , which results in a random distribution of the methyl ester groups . the other was de - esterified with a plant pectin esterase , which results in a block wise distribution of the methyl ester groups . the samples were made to similar de . both samples were titrated and the ph drop over time recorded for samples dissolved at 70 ° c . and 20 ° c ., respectively . the ph drop was measured at 30 - 32 ° c . titration was done using 0 . 1008 m naoh . the comment “ unstable ” refers to the ph - meter , which at high ph values showed an unstable reading . fig3 . 1 shows that the distribution of methyl esters in pectin has no impact on the alkali consumption . the galacturonic acid drives the alkali consumption . fig3 . 2 indicates a difference in the rate of the ph - drop . it also shows , that identical ph - drop is achieved whether the pectin has been dissolved hot or cold . fig3 . 3 shows the ph - drop in the first 120 - 130 minutes , and a random ester group distribution needs about 4 times longer to reach ph = 8 compared to a blocky ester group distribution . since the two pectin preparations have almost identical average de , the faster ph - drop of a blocky ester distribution is explained by local concentration of ester groups . thus , pectin with a blocky ester distribution will act as pectin with a higher average de . in practice , this is important because one might treat a blocky pectin with polygalacturonase to increase the de , which would constitute an easier way to make a high ester pectin than by using the process of re - methylation . the ph drop for one sample having de = 71 % and made from dried lemon peel was recorded at four different temperatures . the sample was prepared by dissolving the pectin at 70 ° c . and subsequently cooling the solution to the recording temperature . the temperature was maintained with a thermostatically controlled water bath . ph drop of pectin with de = 71 % at various temperatures fig4 . 1 shows that the rate of the ph - drop increases with increasing temperature . the rate is particularly increased as the temperature increases above about 30 ° c . the ph drop for one sample having de = 71 % and made from dried lemon peel was recorded at a temperature of 25 - 27 ° c . first , the ph was raised to about 10 with 19 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the sample had reached a ph of 6 - 7 , the ph was again raised to about 10 . this required 1 . 1 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the ph had reached 6 - 7 , the ph was raised a third time to about 10 , which required 1 . 2 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . the sample was prepared by dissolving the pectin at 70 ° c . and subsequently cooling the solution to the recording temperature . the temperature was maintained with a thermostatically controlled water bath . fig5 . 1 shows that the rate of the ph - drop stays unchanged after at least three cycles , where the ph is first increased to about 10 , then after the ph has dropped increased to about 10 . after one cycle , the de is decreased to about 66 %, so the ability to continue reducing ph is caused by an incomplete de - esterification . thus , if alkalinity is appears in pulses , for at least three times pectin is able to reduce the alkali . in fact , in one experiment , which went on for seven days , a 200 ml . 1 % pectin solution of de = 71 % consumed 73 ml . of a 0 . 1 m naoh solution . after this period , the de has decreased to 9 . 1 %. thus , 2 g . pectin consumes 7 . 3 mmol naoh , which corresponds to about 0 . 3 g . naoh . it also means that about 0 . 23 g . methanol is produced , which in combination with the acid effect of pectin may explain the anti - microbial effect of pectin . the ph drop for one sample having de = 81 . 7 % and made from dried lemon peel was recorded at a temperature of 30 - 32 ° c . the concentration of pectin was 0 . 05 - 2 %. the sample was prepared by dissolving the pectin at 70 ° c . and subsequently cooling the solution to the recording temperature . the temperature was maintained with a thermostatically controlled water bath . ph drop at different concentration of pectin solution with de = 81 . 7 % fig6 . 1 shows that at pectin concentrations above 1 %, the ph - drop appears to be independent of the pectin concentration . however , even at very low concentrations of pectin , a clear drop in ph occurs . carbon dioxide is soluble in water , and this experiment shows the ph drop of ion - exchanged water over time without the presence of pectin or other additions . the temperature of the water was kept at 25 ° c . using a thermostatically controlled water bath . fig7 . 1 shows that over a period of about 5 hours , the “ natural ” drop of ph in water is about 0 . 5 ph - units , so the error is tolerable . three samples with degree of esterification ranging from about 55 to about 85 % were tested . all were titrated and the ph drop over time recorded for samples dissolved at 70 ° c . and 20 ° c ., respectively . the ph drop was measured at 30 - 32 ° c . titration was done using 0 . 1008 m naoh . the comment “ unstable ” refers to the ph - meter , which at high ph values showed an unstable reading . the ph drop for one sample , manucol ester er / k , was recorded at a temperature of 30 - 32 ° c . first , the ph was raised to about 10 with 4 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the sample had reached a ph of 5 - 6 , the ph was again raised to about 10 . this required 2 . 5 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the ph had reached 5 - 6 , the ph was raised a third time to about 10 , which required 2 . 0 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the ph had reached about 6 , the ph was again increased to about 10 , which required 1 . 5 ml . naoh . the sample was prepared by dissolving the pectin at 70 ° c . and subsequently cooling the solution to the recording temperature . the temperature was maintained with a thermostatically controlled water bath . fig8 . 1 shows that as the degree of esterification increases in pga , the less alkali can be consumed . fig8 . 2 shows that as for pectin , pga provides a faster ph drop with increasing degree of esterification . fig8 . 3 shows the same dramatic influence of esterification even when the propylene glycol alginate is dissolved at 20 ° c . the figure shows that at the high de , the ph is eventually decreased to below 5 . fig8 . 4 shows that the ph - drop occurs to the same extent whether the propylene glycol alginate solution is made hot or cold . the ph drop for one sample , manucol ester er / k , was recorded at a temperature of 30 - 32 ° c . first , the ph was raised to about 10 with 4 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the sample had reached a ph of 5 - 6 , the ph was again raised to about 10 . this required 2 . 5 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the ph had reached 5 - 6 , the ph was raised a third time to about 10 , which required 2 . 0 ml . 0 . 1 m naoh . when the ph had reached about 6 , the ph was again increased to about 10 , which required 1 . 5 ml . naoh . the sample was prepared by dissolving the pectin at 70 ° c . and subsequently cooling the solution to the recording temperature . the temperature was maintained with a thermostatically controlled water bath . fig9 . 1 shows a tendency for the ph - drop to become slower after two cycles . the ph drop in lotions made according to the two methods described in “ materials and methods ” section 2 . 1 were measured using pectin of about de = 81 . 7 %. 10 grams lotion was slurried in 50 ml distilled water and ph was adjusted with 0 . 1 m naoh to about 10 . pectin concentration in slurry : 0 . 125 %. temperature : 30 ° c . it may seem that when pectin is dissolved in the water phase before mixing with the oil phase provides for a more rapid ph - drop . however , when taking into consideration , that the curve for pectin dissolved in the water phase starts at a slightly lower ph , the two curves are close to identical . thus , there is nothing to suggest that one of the methods for making the lotion influences the effect of the pectin . the lotions were tested by 12 persons — 6 females and 6 males , with the following remarks from the test persons : the lotion was also tested on one dog , which had developed a rash on the nose . treatment of the nose with the lotion twice for one day reduced the rash visibly . to similar treatments over the next two days reduced to rash to an extent , where the rash was difficult to see . cloths were prepared according to the method in “ materials and methods ” section above . fig1 . 1 - 11 . 5 show that irrespective of the concentration of pectin during soaking , and irrespective of the molecular weight of the pectin , the ph - drop is quite similar . however , when the cloth is soaked in a pectin solution , the dried cloth becomes stiffer . table 11 . 1 shows this effect : table 11 . 1 shows that as the molecular weight decreases , the cloth can contain more pectin without becoming unacceptably stiff . mw = 123 , 000 becomes unacceptably stiff at concentrations in the soak above 0 . 10 % mw = 95 , 000 becomes unacceptably stiff at concentrations in the soak above 0 . 20 % mw = 41 , 500 and mw = 25 , 000 become unacceptably stiff at concentrations in the soak above 0 . 50 %. a rinse is normally performed using 16 liters of water . assuming that the rinse dosage is 100 ml , then 0 . 01 % pectin in the rinse corresponds to a pectin solution of 1 . 57 %. 0 . 05 % pectin in the rinse corresponds to a pectin solution of 7 . 4 %. 0 . 10 % pectin in the rinse corresponds to a pectin solution of 13 . 79 %. 0 . 20 % pectin in the rinse corresponds to a pectin solution of 26 . 47 % and 0 . 05 % pectin in the rinse corresponds to a pectin solution of 44 . 44 %. the effect on brookfield viscosity of such pectin solutions are shown in table 11 . 2 : it is clear that as the molecular weights drops , it becomes easier to dissolve the pectin , and in addition the viscosity becomes lower . this enables a rinse to contain more pectin in lower rinse dosage . for pectin with a molecular weight of 123 , 000 , the maximum concentration of pectin in the rinse is about 2 %, for a pectin with a molecular weight of 95 , 000 , the maximum concentration of pectin in the rinse is about 3 %, for a pectin with molecular weight of 41 , 500 , the maximum concentration of pectin in the rinse is about 10 % and for a pectin with molecular weight of 25 , 000 , the maximum concentration of pectin in the rinse is about 12 %. pectin products having a de of 93 . 4 % and 9 . 6 %, respectively were blended 1 : 1 and 100 g . 1 % solution was prepared of the blend through heating to 70 ° c . the consumption of alkali at 25 ° c . and the ph - drop over time at 30 - 32 ° c . was recorded . titration was done using 0 . 1008 m naoh . the comment “ unstable ” refers to the ph - meter , which at high ph values showed an unstable reading . fig1 . 1 shows that blending high de pectin and low de pectin results in an alkali consumption in between the alkali consumption of the individual pectin products . fig1 . 2 shows that the ph drop over time falls between the ph drop over time of the individual components . compared to the individual components , the blend of high de pectin and low de pectin provides for an increase in alkali consumption compared to pure high de pectin and an increase in ph - drop compared to low de pectin . effect of blending high ester pectin and low ester propylene glycol alginate a blend of 50 % of a pectin having a de of 93 . 4 % and 50 % of a propylene glycol alginate ( pga ) having a de of 55 % was dissolved at 70 % in a similar manner as in example 12 and compared with the alkali consumption of the individual components . fig1 . 1 shows that the alkali consumption falls between the alkali consumption of the individual components , but the use of a mixture of a high de pectin and a medium de pga results in a smaller increase in alkali consumption than observed with the mixture of a high de pectin and a low de pectin of example 12 . fig1 . 2 shows that the ph - drop of the blend falls between the ph - drop of the individual components . however , even a relatively low esterified pga provides for a faster ph - drop than a much higher esterified pectin . compared with the individual components the blend provides an increase in alkali consumption compared to the pectin product alone . effect of blending high de propylene glycol alginate and low de pectin a blend of 50 % of a propylene glycol alginate ( pga ) having a de of 85 % and 50 % of a pectin having a de of 9 . 6 % was dissolved at 70 % in a similar manner as in example 12 and compared with the alkali consumption of the individual components . compared to the individual components , the blend provides for an increase in alkali consumption compared to propylene glycol alginate alone , and an increase in ph drop compared to low de pectin alone . it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes could be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept thereof . it is understood , therefore , that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed , but it is intended to cover modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims .
a skin - protecting alkalinity - controlling composition comprises one or more carboxylic acid polysaccharides . said compositions are capable of providing buffering , and thus avoiding a major increase in the ph of an aqueous system and / or are capable of reducing the ph of aqueous systems , in which alkalinity is formed as a result of chemical and / or biological reactions . the compositions may be used in personal care products , such as skin creams and lotions , hygiene products , wound care products , fabric treating products etc .