USA: CONSUMER GROUP CALLS FOR BAN ON "OLESTRA" FAT SUBSTITUTE скачать в хорошем качестве

USA: CONSUMER GROUP CALLS FOR BAN ON "OLESTRA" FAT SUBSTITUTE

(1 Jul 1996) English/Nat A U-S consumer watchdog group has called for the banning of a controversial fat substitute which it says could prove to be a killer. The Center for Science in the Public Interest says hundreds have suffered diarrhoea and crippling cramps after trying snack foods containing 'Olestra' But the snack food industry has fought back, saying say their tests show the `fake fat' has caused nothing more than a little indigestion in early market tests. And that's not enough, they argue, to force them to pull the product off the shelf. The snack wars heated up today in Washington on Monday as opponents of the food additive Olestra urged the government to ban its use in snack products. Olestra is currently used as a fat substitute by food industry giant Frito Lay in several new snack food products currently being market tested. But a consumer group is demanding that Frito-Lay withdraw its "Max" potato and tortilla chips, which contain the fake fat, off supermarket shelves. The Center for Science in the Public Interest says the chips have made nearly 200 people sick. It wants it banned, and says it's only a matter of time before someone dies from eating Olestra-treated food. SOUNDBITE: "The FDA must protect the public from an additive that has already caused severe symptoms and might even cause deaths, if those symptoms occurred when the victim was engaged in a risky activity such as swimming or driving. It's only a matter of time before products containing Olestra cause deaths. The only thing that should die is Olestra itself." SUPER CAPTION: Dr. Michael Jacobson, Center for Science in the Public Interest The C-S-P-I says 190 people have reported having severe diarrhoea and crippling cramps after eating snack foods containing Olestra. SOUNDBITE: "This pain was so sharp and of such a magnitude that I would say it was almost like the beginning of a labor; the very onset of labor feels very much like that, a very sharp gas-type pain. And that's what I was having, and I did have those for hours. SUPER CAPTION: Jean Medonic, Marion, Iowa resident. They want the Food and Drug Administration, which approved Olestra for limited use last year, to pull if off the market, as it would for additives that cause similar problems. SOUNDBITE: "If it wasn't Olestra they had, but some other unknown agent in their food, we'd call their symptoms food poisoning. And we'd say they had dysentery, some of them, and that's a pretty serious health effect." SUPER CAPTION: Dr. Ian Greaves. University of Minnesota School of Public Health There's a lot riding on Olestra for the multi-billion dollar snack food industry. Snack food maker Frito-Lay has invested heavily in the development of Olestra as a food additive to replace high fat content in snack foods. They say using Olestra could dramatically reduce the fat content in many of their products, a key factor in the now lucrative low-calorie segment of the industry. The industry hopes the reduced fat content and relative safety of Olestra use could revolutionize the food industry. SOUNDBITE: "It may paradoxically get us to help stick to healthier diets. Remember, it's only being introduced as a snack food as a very first step. So my view is let's not throw out the baby with the bath water. A little bit of temporary indigestion shouldn't hold back the introduction of what may be one of the most significant scientific breakthroughs of the next century." SUPER CAPTION: Dr. David Heber, UCLA School of Medicine Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...