Olestra (also known by its brand name Olean) is an artificial fat substance created by Procter & Gamble in 1968. It was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration that same year.

Chemically, Olestra is a sugar molecule with several fatty-acid residues added. As such, it cannot be absorbed in the digestive system. This makes it ideal as a fat additive. However, it was known to cause side effects such as diarrhea.

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