Essay, Research Paper: Olestra!

Olestra "FAT-FREE FAT"??? Oh! Lestra! It sounds like a musical to me. I imagine scads of scantily clad showgirls with big headdresses kicking it Vegas Style as the dance and sing the praises of Olestra, the fat subsitute. Oh! Oh! O-Les-Tra - eat it up and the pounds melt right away! And your favourite treat - will taste more sweet, when you know that it will not make you gain! Yeah, something like that. But right when the curtain for the second act is about to go up - the stage manager realizes that there's no one there to go on stage - the babes are duking it out in the ladies room for a seat - foolish people actually ate the stuff! MAY CAUSE STOMACH CRAMPS AND DIAHERREA Oops, did I forget to mention that? Our good friends at Proctor and Gamble bring up this lovley fat substitute that will make us sick. And the government says that's okay. As long as they remember to warn us, I deserve everything I get, right? Here's a little more info: In June, FDA made approved a new fake fat - Olestra. Unlike some of the earlier substitute fats, which are already on the market, Olestra doesn't get absorbed by the body; but it still goes through the digestive tract. Since it doesn't get absorbed it goes straight through are digestive system. This miracle fat (as some people call it), was developed by Proctor & Gamble. It works by being so indigestible that it bypasses any means that would allow your body to absorb it. One of the most interesting things that these fake fats reduce the fat and calories while keeping the texture of real fat. While most of the other fake fats can't withstand the cooking temperatures like natural fats, Olestra seem to be able to. Since Olestra is chemical made with sucrose and fatty acids, it is a lot like natural fat and can withstand these temperatures. Did I mention it caused liver cancer in some of the animal testing groups? This has been around since 1975 when Proctor & Gamble Int to the FDA to get it approved as a drug it failed repeatedly so they gave up in 1988. In 1987, they attempted to gain approval as a calorie free subsitute for cooking oil, it passed. It was planned to begin the marketting in 1990 in cheese puffs and cookies, but then the FDA pulled it's approval pending further testing. The financial stakes are enourmous as well. Proctor & Gamble has already invested $200 million in developing, studying and testing Olestra. Miracle? well, what could possibly be wrong with it if it saves a few calories? For starters, it seriously depletes the body's vitamin supply of vitamins A,D,E and K. If you eat eighteen Olestra (also known as Olean) potato chips a day your blood cartenoid levels will reduce by 50%. In another study, it only took six chips a day would reduce beta carotene levels by 50%. If you have a bleeding disorder, your depletion of vitamin K could be very serious. In some animal studies it caused liver cancer. In another, it caused lung cancer. But you'll die thin! If you think Olestra keeps the pounds off, try chemotherapy! Proctor & Gamble say this: On January 24, 1996, Proctor & Gamble introduced Olean brand fat replacer, a breakthrough, calorie-free fat replacement ingredient that can fully replace the added fat and cut calories in salted snacks and crackers, while still delivering great taste. For those who enjoy snack foods, Olean will provide new options that have little or no fat and far fewer calories. For example, a one-ounce bag of potato chips made with Olean will contain 0 grams of fat and about 70 calories--compared with a one-ounce bag of regular potato chips which contains about 10 grams of fat and about 150 calories. And I haven't even mention the part of the warning where they warn you about anal leakage. Does this mean that I can no longer trust my body to warn me of it's major functions if I want to eat. I think my life will be a little better - not to mention less embarassing - without a snack - thanks. Who will buy this stuff? Plenty of people. Who are these people? I can kid ourselves and say that all kinds of people will buy Olean. Women. Women of all sizes and shapes are fat, fear fat, think they are fat, all manner of women. Thre will be male consumers of Olean enchanced foods, certainly, but all the marketing, all the literature for lowfat, low calorie, sugar and hazard free food has been directed at women. There is no reason this would be any different. This raises - yet again - the timeless question "What are the side effects?" well, loss of valuable nutrients, cancer risk, anal leakage, diarrhea, and intestinal cramps are the toll. The fact that P&G knew that no matter how awful the side effects people would buy. Any small glimmer of hope in the battle of the bulge is marketable. Is that their fault? No. That's a whole other subject. However, because the clear message here is no matter how unpleasant you feel, no matter what the toll on your health is- being thin is the ultimate goal. Now one argument would be Thin vs. Healthy! Conclusion: Olean, Olestra its's all a dangerous game. In the interest of fairness, several doctors do endorse Olestra as a valid "food" choice.