Those gut-wrenching Olestra chips from the ’90s might have been good for us

[n2doc]

By Rachel Feltman

Remember Olestra? The molecule has the same taste and mouthfeel as regular fat, but your intestines can’t absorb it. That means delicious, satiating potato chips that essentially slide right through you. Olestra, which was marketed under the brand name Olean, was a dieter’s dream when it was marketed in the 1990s, during the low-fat craze.

It was also a massive pain—in the gastrointestinal area, to be precise. It became notorious for its warning of “abdominal cramping and loose stools.” But a new study has found that Olestra might actually be good for you, at least in one way: it could help rid your body of a dangerous toxin.

Like any 1990s child-of-the-calorie-conscious, I ate a lot of Wow! chips growing up. I still have the phantom stomach pains, and I still miss those damn chips. We now know that the fat substitute, which lost most of its popularity during the late 90s (sales dropped from $400 million in 1998 to $200 million in 2000), doesn’t actually help you lose weight. Lay rebranded Wow! chips as “Light” products, presumably to get away from the bloat of negativity surrounding the additive.

A study (paywall) lead by Ronald Jandacek, an adjunct professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at University of Cincinnati, presents one possible benefit of the fake fat (other than utter deliciousness, that is). Patients with high levels of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), a man-made chemical and known carcinogen, were fed either regular Pringles or those containing Olestra. After a year, concentrations of PCBs in the body decreased significantly faster for the Olestra group than they had the year before—an increase eight times greater than the control group, who ate regular Pringles.

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http://qz.com/197458/those-gut-wrenching-olestra-chips-from-the-90s-might-have-been-good-for-us/

Wonder if mineral oil would have the same effect on purging fat-soluble chemicals?

[onehandle]

1. I loved the Doritos Wow chips and never experienced the 'side effects.'

I wish they still made them.

[GoCubsGo]

2. Same here.

The only thing I ever ate that gave me "side effects" is "all-natural" papaya. Makes me sick as as can be. And, regular chips go straight to my hips, so I pretty much forgo them altogether. It would be nice to enjoy some Doritos again, and flush out some PCBs in the process.

[TlalocW]

3. No one tell Limbaugh

For some reason he felt it was keeping in the conservative line to push Olestra.

I get the same cramps when I go crazy and eat two bags of apple chips so for those who miss Olean, you can at least get some of the experience back.

TlalocW

[CincyDem]

4. Close encounters of the Olestra Kind

Having worked for these guys during the olestra days, it's close to home. Sucrose polyester - can you tell why the marketing guys call is olestra - became the bad boy for CSIP and their chair Michael Jacobson. The reason: he felt like the Olestra folks "dissed" him in a hearing when he pitched his scientific conclusions about olestra. Turns out they were based on far fewer people that what would be the norm for that kind of testing. He made it his life's work to protect America from this monster called Olestra. My POV - middle of the road issue in the grand scheme of things (at best) and given the trade offs versus the adverse conditions of obesity, losing Olestra was a disservice driven by this guys petty ego. In my book - he's the Ralph Nader of the food business. Did some good stuff AND did some really bad stuff. This falls into the bad stuff column.

If you think the chips were good, I gotta say the broader "testing menu" was amazing. Fried shrimp, french fries, kettle chips, chicken wings...you name it fried, the were making it with olestra in the test kitchens. Rumor is there were fried twinkies but I never got close to them.

The cramping and loose stools thing - yep. It happened. In my current life, it's the same as eating anything really really fatty when you've had gall bladder surgery. Nothing life shattering, just something to watch. In the Olean world, that means "don't eat 4 bags of potato chips - you'll have some issues".

Doesn't surprise me that it sucks up PCBs and it would surprise me if it was just a fat soluble thing that could be replicated by mineral oil. Sucrose polyester was a very specifically designed molecule that is really big (on a molecular scale) and acts like a scrub brush as it goes down. The PCBs are probably hooking up with the polyester chains - not something you're going to normally consume in any other way. That's why this stuff had such unique properties.

[n2doc]

5. Cool info- Thanks! n/t

[GreenPartyVoter]

7. This is all very intriguing! I wish they would bring it back.

[SomethingFishy]

6. Lewis Black did this funny bit about Milk..

Good for ya or bad for ya?

I got so tired of trying to decipher who is telling me the truth, especially when it came to food and drugs. I finally gave up altogether, I just eat whatever I want, if it makes me feel bad.. I don't eat it again.

[GreenPartyVoter]

9. I had given up margarine and felt

guilty about returning to butter, but I just don't care anymore. I don't.

[SomethingFishy]

10. Yup, use real butter myself.

For all I know all the "facts" about butter come from the margarine people.

[KG]

8. anal leakage still rocks!

[tavernier]

11. Um... Pringles still sell Olestra chips.

I buy them all the time. Olestra never gave me any stomach problems.

Check your chip aisle.