NIDDK

Olestra is now on the market and can be found in snack foods in your local grocery store. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved this fat-free, calorie-free cooking oil in January 1996 for use in certain snack foods after evaluating data from more than 150 studies, including 43 clinical trials. Procter & Gamble (P&G) developed olestra and began advertising it under the brand name Olean^® on February 21, 1998. The company claims that Olean provides "a practical way to help cut fat and calories without giving up great taste."

Olestra's chemical composition adds no fat or calories to food. Snacks such as potato chips, crackers, and tortilla chips made with olestra are lower in fat and calories than snacks made with traditional fats. A 1-ounce serving of potato chips fried with olestra contains 75 calories and 0 grams of fat. A 1-ounce serving of regular chips contains 150 calories and 10 grams of fat.

Olestra is made with soybean or cottonseed oil and, according to P&G, is processed in a way to create an oil that looks, cooks, and tastes like ordinary fat, but isn't broken down by the body.

Olestra is not without side effects. It may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools in some individuals, and it interferes with the body's absorption of certain fat-soluble vitamins and nutrients.

The FDA requires P&G and other manufacturers who use olestra to label all foods made with it and to add the essential vitamins A, D, E, and K to olestra to compensate for the increased fecal loss of these nutrients. The required labeling shown below provides consumers with the information they need to decide to use or disuse products containing olestra.

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.