A 9-mo randomized clinical trial comparing fat-substituted and fat-reduced diets in healthy obese men: the Ole Study.
BACKGROUND
Dietary fat has been implicated as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and obesity.


OBJECTIVE
We evaluated the effect on body weight, body fat, lipids, glucose, and insulin of replacing dietary fat with olestra in moderately obese men.


METHODS
Forty-five healthy overweight men were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 diets: control diet (33% fat), fat-reduced diet (25% fat), or fat-substituted diet (one-third of dietary fat replaced by olestra to achieve a diet containing 25% metabolizable fat). Body fat was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat by computed tomography.


RESULTS
Thirty-six men completed the 9-mo study. Body weight and body fat in the fat-substituted group declined by a mean (+/- SEM) of 6.27 +/- 1.66 and 5.85 +/- 1.34 kg, respectively, over 9 mo compared with 3.8 +/- 1.34 and 3.45 +/- 1.0 kg in the control group and 1.79 +/- 0.81 and 1.68 +/- 0.75 kg in the fat-reduced diet group. At 9 mo, the mean difference in body fat between the fat-reduced and fat-substituted groups was -4.19 +/- 1.19 kg (95% CI: -6.57, -1.81), that between the control and fat-substituted groups was -2.55 +/- 1.21 kg (-0.13, -4.97), and that between the control and fat-reduced groups was 1.63 +/- 1.18 kg (3.96, -0.70). The men eating the fat-reduced diet asked for almost no extra foods, in contrast with the significantly higher requests (P < 0.05) from both of the other 2 groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Replacement of dietary fat with olestra reduces body weight and total body fat when compared with a 25%-fat diet or a control diet containing 33% fat.
Bray
George A
GA
Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, USA. brayga@pbrc.edu
Lovejoy
Jennifer C
JC
Most-Windhauser
Marlene
M
Smith
Steven R
SR
Volaufova
Julia
J
Denkins
Yvonne
Y
de Jonge
Lilian
L
Rood
Jennifer
J
Lefevre
Michael
M
Eldridge
Alison L
AL
Peters
John C
JC
D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000473:pathology; D001823:Body Composition; D001835:Body Weight; D018752:Diet, Fat-Restricted; D019358:Fat Substitutes / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000178:diet therapy* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D012016:Reference Values; D013395:Sucrose / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D019358:Fat Substitutes; D005227:Fatty Acids; D013395:Sucrose; C013692:sucrose polyester