Olestra

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Three-dimensional representation of the Olestra molecule (animated)

Olestra is a synthetic fat substitute consisting of esters of fatty acids and sucrose (sucrose polyester). It cannot be broken down by the body's own lipases . Olestra is essentially not broken down by the human intestinal flora . Since it is not absorbed and not digested by the body, it is completely excreted. In a study by the manufacturer on the environmental impact it is stated that Olestra is broken down in the environment by microorganisms with a half-life of 10 to 88 days.

Manufacturing

It is manufactured by converting (transesterifying) fats (esters of fatty acids with glycerine) with methanol . This creates methyl esters of the fatty acids ( biodiesel ), which in turn are converted with sucrose to form Olestra.

properties

Chemically, Olestra is a mixture that typically consists of 76% octaesters of sucrose; the remainder consists mainly of heptaesters and about 0.2% each of hexaesters and pentaesters.

use

Since fats have a high physiological calorific value , they have a negative image as "calorie bombs". The food industry has long been trying to reduce the fat content of foods and offer so-called light products . However, this is difficult with fried products (e.g. French fries or potato chips ), as large amounts of fat are required for the manufacturing process. Intensive research was carried out in this area in particular, in order to develop methods of reducing the amount of fat or even being able to do without fat altogether. Olestra was synthesized in 1968 by researchers from Procter & Gamble . On January 24, 1996, after years of efforts by the company, the US Food and Drug Administration first approved the product for use in food, limited to certain snacks such as potato chips or tortilla chips. Olestra is not approved in Europe because in Europe sugar esters of fatty acids (E 473) may contain a maximum of ten percent tetra and higher esters of sucrose.

Side effects and risks

Olestra reduces the absorption of fat-soluble substances such as vitamins A, D, E and K and the carotenoids. Therefore, Olestra must be enriched with the fat-soluble vitamins, while reducing the concentration of carotenoids in the blood is considered harmless.

If more than 30 percent of the dietary fat is replaced by Olestra, abdominal cramps (stomach and stomach cramps) and diarrhea up to fecal incontinence occur because the water-insoluble substance separates from the rest of the stool. This separation and the symptoms resulting from it also depend on the fatty acid composition; Longer-chain fatty acids such as docosanoic acid reduce the symptoms.

In the US, all products containing Olestra had to carry a warning because of the side effects, but this regulation has been lifted since 2003 despite objections.

Experiments with rats showed that ingestion of Olestra resulted in permanent weight gain. Rats fed chips containing Olestra to replace fat weighed more than rats fed normal chips. Even after both groups were fed fatty food, the animals fed with Olestra kept their higher weight.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Barbara A. Nuck, Thomas G. Schlagheck, Thomas W. Federle: Inability of the human fecal microflora to metabolize the nonabsorbable fat substitute, olestra . In: Journal of Industrial Microbiology . tape 13 , no. 5 , 1994, pp. 328-334 , doi : 10.1007 / BF01569736 .
  2. ↑ Spiegel from April 1, 1996: Aroma with a mask
  3. ^ Gregory S. Allgood, Drew C. McAvoy, Daniel M. Woltering: Environmental assessment of a new food ingredient, the fat replacer olestra . In: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry . tape 16 , no. 3 , 1997, p. 586-600 , doi : 10.1002 / etc.5620160328 .
  4. ↑ Fat substitutes, fat substitutes and fat substitutes. Consumer Service Bavaria, February 6, 2007, accessed on November 6, 2017 .
  5. ↑ John C. Peters, Kenneth D. Lawson, Suzette J. Middleton, Keith C. Triebwasser: Assessment of the Nutritional Effects of Olestra, a Nonabsorbed Fat Replacement: Summary . In: Journal of Nutrition . tape 127 , no. 8 , 1997, pp. 1719S-1728S , PMID 9237967 (free full text).
  6. ↑ Marian L. Neuhouser, Cheryl L. Rock, Alan R. Kristal, Ruth E. Patterson, Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, Lawrence J. Cheskin, Mark D. Thornquist: Olestra is associated with slight reductions in serum carotenoids but does not markedly influence serum fat-soluble vitamin concentrations . In: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition . tape 83 , no. 3 , 2006, p. 624-631 , PMID 16522910 (free full text).
  7. ^ Olaf Adam, Rüdiger Arnold, Wolfgang Forth: Pharmacological evaluation of obesity therapeutics . In: Deutsches Ärzteblatt . tape 96 , no. 50 , 1999, pp. A-3243–3247 ( PDF - free full text).
  8. ^ Thomas G. Schlagheck, Karen A. Riccardi, Nora L. Zorich, Sarah A. Torri, Lynn D. Dugan, John C. Peters: Olestra Dose Response on Fat-Soluble and Water-Soluble Nutrients in Humans . In: The Journal of Nutrition . tape 127 , no. 8 , 1997, pp. 1646S-1665S , PMID 9237961 (free full text).
  9. ↑ RJ Jandacek, JJ Kester, AJ Papa, TJ Wehmeier, PY Lin: Olestra formulation and the gastrointestinal tract . In: Lipids . tape 34 , no. 8 , 1999, p. 771-783 , doi : 10.1007 / s11745-999-0423-3 , PMID 10529087 .
  10. ^ Website of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA): Final rule; denial of requests for a hearing and response to objections; Food Additives Permitted for Direct Addition to Food for Human Consumption; Olestra. Published in the Federal Register - 68 FR 46403 August 5, 2003.
  11. ↑ SE Swithers, SB Ogden, TL Davidson Fat substitutes promote weight gain in rats consuming high-fat diets. In: Behavioral neuroscience. Volume 125, number 4, August 2011, pp. 512-518, doi: 10.1037 / a0024404 , PMID 21688890 , PMC 3144274 (free full text).

Web links

Commons : Olestra  - collection of images, videos and audio files