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The Controversy Surrounding Olestra: A Closer Look at Its Risks and Benefits

Olestra, also known as Olean, is a fat substitute that gained popularity in the 90s but quickly fell from grace. It is made from sucrose and fatty acids, mimicking the taste and feel of fat without being digestible by the human body. Initially created as a fat-reducing agent, Olestra's popularity waned due to serious gastrointestinal side effects, including diarrhea and abdominal cramping. Despite attempts to fortify Olestra products with vitamins, concerns over nutrient absorption persist. Explore the potential dangers and controversies surrounding this once-beloved fat substitute.

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The Controversy Surrounding Olestra: A Closer Look at Its Risks and Benefits

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  1. Olestra: Is it really that bad? By Sarah Gaynor

  2. Yes.

  3. What is Olestra? Normal fats are three fatty acids bonded to a glycerol molecule. Olestra uses a sucrose (sugar) molecule joined at esters to six to eight fatty acids, instead. It tastes and feels like a fat, but our bodies don’t even know where to begin to digest it.

  4. Background • P&G wanted a fat-reducing drug in 1975 • Couldn’t show efficiency, so used as a food additive • Brand name: Olean • Approved in 1996 – Only by the US • Lay’s WOW in 1998 • Label removed in 2003 – WOW discontinued, Lay’s Light begun • Other companies dropped olestra line of chips

  5. Products • Lay's Light Original • Lay's Light KC Masterpiece BBQ • Doritos Light Nacho Cheese • Ruffles Light Original • Ruffles Light Cheddar & Sour Cream • Tostitos Light Restaurant Style • Fat-Free Pringles • Fat-Free Bar-B-Q Pringles • Fat-Free Sour Cream and Onion Pringles

  6. Concerns: Vitamins • Warning label: “This Product Contains Olestra. Olestra may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools. Olestra inhibits the absorption of some vitamins and other nutrients. Vitamins A, D, E, and K have been added.” • Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble • Olestra carries them away • Chips fortified with vitamins

  7. Concerns: Carotenoids • Organic pigments • Found in fruits, vegetables like carrots, palm oil • May lower risk of blindness, heart disease, cancer • Like the vitamins, fat-soluble

  8. Concerns: “Abdominal cramping and loose stools” • Biggest problem • Eight-week studies (17 test subjects): • 8 g (16 chips) a day increased diarrhea by a factor of 5 • 32 g (about 3 oz of chips) gave half the subjects diarrhea • 8 g: gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, loose stools, nausea, and gas increased by 65% • 20 g was enough to double incidents • Intermittent symptoms lasted 40 days • Testimonials • http://www.zug.com/pranks/olestra/

  9. Procter and Gamble’s stance • Reduce consumption of fats • Eat as much as you want • “Olean is a replacement for fat, not for common sense.” • Gastrointestinal effects are similar to that of a high-fiber diet • “The added vitamins have no impact on the body’s vitamin levels regardless of how much or how often Olean snacks are eaten.” –Olean website

  10. Complaints • More than 20,000 complaints • More complaints after label removal, name change, removal of Olean label, too • Some consumers went to hospital • Frito-Lay being sued by Massachusetts woman • Backed by nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI)

  11. Is P&G trustworthy? • Actonel, a drug for osteoperosis (Britain) • Dr Aubrey Blumsohn at Sheffield University • Ghost writer, no access to data • Finally gained access—results framed poorly and innaccurately • No action from university; suspended for talking to media

  12. Conclusion Believe what you want to believe, but I won’t be eating Lay’s Light anytime soon…

  13. References http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olestra - olestra infohttp://www.cspinet.org/olestra/OLES-M.AVI - anti-olestra commercialhttp://www.cspinet.org/olestra/ - anti-olestra sitehttp://health.howstuffworks.com/question526.htm - how olestra workshttp://health.howstuffworks.com/fat.htm - how fat workshttp://www.olean.com/ - main site http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1657302,00.html – legal bit http://www.thes.co.uk/search/story.aspx?story_id=2026307 – recent news on legal bit http://scientific-misconduct.blogspot.com/search?q=proctor+%26+gamble – legal bit central http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d9/Olestra_stereo_animation.gif - molecule gif http://www.zug.com/pranks/olestra/ --eeew.... http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/lax/182862349.html -- also very gross http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/NEW00524.html - being approved http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/ANSWERS/2003/ANS01245.html - changing the label http://cspinet.org/new/200601041.html - Getting sued http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fat - fat info http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2000/06/23/oleanproducts.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2000/06/23/fin_canadian_ban_adds_to.html&h=373&w=600&sz=85&hl=en&start=6&tbnid=FtEqjJTzuA8ToM:&tbnh=84&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dolestra%2Bproduct%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den – News article on falling sales in 2000 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carotenoid - carotenoids http://www.becomehealthynow.com/article/fats/156/ - problems with olestra

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