Lay's Wow Chips were fat-free potato chips produced by Frito-Lay containing Olestra. They were first introduced in 1998, and were marketed using the Lay's, Ruffles, Doritos, and Tostitos brands. Although initially popular, charting sales of $400 million in their first year, they subsequently dropped to $200 million by 2000, as Olestra caused "abdominal cramping, diarrhea, fecal incontinence ["anal leakage"], and other gastrointestinal symptoms" in some customers.[1] Warnings were required to be included on the packaging, with the WOW bag bearing a warning that read, "This Product Contains Olestra. Olestra may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools. Olestra inhibits the absorption of some vitamins and other nutrients. Vitamins A, D, E, and K have been added."[2]
 A bag of Nacho Cheesier Doritos WOW from 1998 | |
| Place of origin | United States |
|---|---|
| Created by | Frito-Lay |
| Main ingredients | Potatoes, Olestra |
Around the same time, the WOW brand was renamed to "Light." The product then continued under that brand name until they were discontinued in 2016.
References
Wikiwand in your browser!
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
