Structure of Olestra®

Olestra® is an ester of sucrose and six, seven or eight fatty acids. Here is the FDA "backgrounder" on olestra.
Because of the possibility that hardware limitations may cause difficulties in viewing six structures simultaneously, this page has been split in two. To see the structure of olestra® forthwith, click here.

You may also download the molecular structures on these pages.

"Natural" fats are triglycerides, that is, esters of glycerine (1,2,3-propanetriol) and three fatty acids. (For simplicity I have used stearic acid, an eighteen-carbon fatty acid derived from animal fat or palm oil; obviously natural fats contain a range of fatty acids. Olestra®, however, is probably made using only stearic acid, which is cheap and readily available.)

glycerine stearic acid
a triglyceride

Next page


Copyright © 1997 by Daniel J. Berger. This work may be copied without limit if its use is to be for non-profit educational purposes. Such copies may be by any method, present or future. The author requests only that this statement accompany all such copies. All rights to publication for profit are retained by the author.

 to Dan Berger's Home Page (more links there)

Bluffton University Science Department Home Page

Bluffton University Home Page


Maintained by Dan Berger

We rated with RSAC