Olestra is a
fat substitute made from
fatty acids esterified to
sucrose and can be used in the preparation of virtually any food made with fat. Foods made with
olestra retain the mouthfeel, palatability and satiating effects of their full-fat counterparts without providing any digestible energy. Because
olestra provides no energy, it has the potential to be a useful tool in
weight loss and weight maintenance. Short-term studies of
olestra replacement in foods demonstrate that fat replacement leads to a net reduction in fat intake. When excess total energy is available, fat replacement also reduces total energy intake in lean and obese men and women. In longer-term studies in which
olestra is incorporated into the daily diet, there is an incomplete compensation for the fat energy replaced by
olestra. When
overweight men consumed
olestra as part of a varied diet over nine months,
weight loss continued for the duration of the study, whereas individuals receiving a typical
low-fat diet regained most of the initial weight lost. Other studies are underway to examine the usefulness of
olestra in long-term weight maintenance following
weight loss. Post-marketing surveillance of
olestra foods in the United States indicates that substitution of
olestra for only 1-2 g of fat d-1 may be sufficient to prevent the average
weight gain reported in adults of 0.5-1.0 kg year-1.