A Junk Science Stomach Ache

On July 1, 1996, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) held a widely covered press conference about olestra, the new fat substitute by Procter and Gamble. Olestra was recently approved for food use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is now being test marketed in Frito-Lay's Max potato and tortilla chips.

Despite going through a 20-year, $200 million FDA-approval process, olestra is being made controversial by groups such as CSPI because, in some individuals, olestra may be associated with temporary gastrointestinal (GI) distress, such as loose stools and cramping. Toward this end, the FDA requires that products containing olestra carry a label informing consumers of this possibility.

On July 1, 1996, CSPI sent a letter to the FDA about olestra. In the letter, CSPI Executive Director Michael Jacobson summarized the results of a CSPI "market research survey" of about 540 households conducted last week in the three cities where the Max potato chip is being test marketed. CSPI reported that:

26 percent of households surveyed had tried the chips since the chips were put on the market April 22, 1996;

In 27 of the 135 households (20 percent) who tried the chips, claims of gastrointestinal (GI) problems were reported;

Of those who claimed to have experienced GI problems, 58 percent claimed "mild" GI effects, 23 percent claimed "moderate" GI effects, and 19 percent claimed "severe" GI effects.

CSPI went on to extrapolate that three million people per year would experience "severe" GI effects from eating Max chips. CSPI urged the FDA "to take immediate action to withdraw the approval of olestra before even greater numbers of individuals suffer severe pain, harm , or even death." The death claim was repeated at the news conference by Jacobson.

DEATH?! FROM POTATO CHIPS??!! BASED ON THE CSPI SURVEY???!!!

CSPI exaggeration. Since the Max chips went on sale in April, about 200,000 bags have been sold. According to Frito-Lay, a total of 67 people have reported GI problems from eating olestra. According to CSPI, 192 people have called a toll-free hotline to complain about the chips.

Using the 67 and 192 figures as a range, and then conservatively assuming that only 200,000 people consumed the 200,000 bags of Max chips, the rate of GI effects has ranged from 67-in-200,000 to 192-in-200,000 or from about 1-in-3,000 to 1-in-1,042.

Thus, a better estimate of GI effects to date is somewhere in the range of 0.03 percent to 0.1 percent - - not CSPI's 20 percent. This range is probably still high given that, in all likelihood, more than one person in a household would eat from the same bag of chips -- so more than 200,000 people have eaten the chips.

What's a GI effect? This question is harder to answer. CSPI did not indicate what reported GI effects qualified as "mild," "moderate," and "severe."

How do they know that these effects occurred? The CSPI data were self-reported -- a euphemism for "not verified."

How do they know what caused the reported effects? Also, these self-reported effects were self-associated with olestra. For example, there are many foods that can cause loose stools, such as any milk product or spicy food. If someone eats Max chips and a milk product or a spicy salsa, and then experiences "loose stool," how does that person know the loose stool wasn't caused by the milk product or salsa?

Olestra may cause GI disorders in some people under certain conditions. But guess what? So do many other foods we eat. As an example, the inability to digest milk products (i.e., lactose intolerance) affects about 20 percent, or 1-in-5, of the U.S. population, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Lactose intolerance can cause a range of symptoms, including severe diarrhea (I found this out first-hand when I was in college). Additionally, some people are just plain allergic to milk and can experience severe allergic reactions. And milk doesn't even carry the warning label that olestra does!

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Copyright © 1996 Steven J. Milloy. All rights reserved. Site developed and hosted by WestLake Solutions, Inc.