European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 21, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 a the stars and Stripe letters a hazards of using diet pills re emphasize i am writing in response to your article warning against using the Belgium diet clinics pills. Throughout the past years i have gained weight. The pounds creep up on you until you re very heavy and Don t truly realize it. Children s schedules a Busy career entertaining volunteering pills prescribed for a a female problems and erratic eating habits All contribute to the extra weight. In the past several years i have gone to two different army hospitals asking for guidance and monitoring while on a prescribed diet. The first doctor in the United states told me to pick any Book off any Library shelf and follow any diet. 1 fell that with Over 50 pounds to lose 1 should be monitored by a doctor. Last year Here in Frankfurt i again asked for help in losing weight. A dress size of 16 was a pretty Good indication to me that i had a problem. The doctor could not or would not see my problem and instructed me not to worry about it. Now i ask you Frankfurt regional medical Center officials what choices arc you leaving me i am an overweight Middle aged dependent wife who wants assistance in losing weight. You were not willing to help me but or Cocson so office doors in Belgium were open. Or cock cons does not do a thorough physical but neither does any army Hospital for dependent spouses. After taking blood pressure and weight or. Cock cons asks Many questions about your personal health history medications surgeries health problems Etc. He continually updates this information throughout your follow up visits. He then prescribes a diet Pill tailored to each person s individual physiological make up and dietary needs and urges you to phone if a problem or question develops. After being on the pills for Over three months i have lost 37 pounds. The diet pills have Given me a needed reprieve from hunger in order to develop a More healthy approach to eating that i Hope will last a lifetime. I do not expect these pills to solve my poor eating habits they arc an Aid a not a solution. Or. Cock cons provides a list of a a dose and a a done tsp that serves As a sensible nutritional guide Complete with new eating and exercise suggestions. He asks that you eat a balanced diet but reduce the amount of food you eat. He encourages exercise to Lone the Muscles and to help lose those unwanted pounds. Or. Coesens Hopes that after two to six months of treatment you will have developed a new lifestyle. Time will Tell if this weight stays off but with the doctors guidance and my Strong desire to keep the weight off i have a great Start in your article you spoke of Side effects. I would like to ask How Many people Are on the diet and How Many Are experiencing Side effects people react differently to medications but still doctors prescribe them daily. Please do not unnecessarily scare the Community with unfounded statements. This Only forces them to go a into the Tell me instead what to be careful of where to go or who to see if i have a problem or present me with a viable alternative. Done to Send me away with a shrug of the shoulders and a a we done to handle that after All i did come to you the Frankfurt regional Hospital first. You were the ones who had no Lime for this a a Well patient. I have since Learned that there is a nutritional clinic at the 97th general after setting up an appointment for you they evaluate your nutritional needs draw up a diet plan for you and Send you away with no further evaluation guidance or encouragement. No blood pressure is taken much less the a a thorough examination that you say is required. At least the doctor in the Stales was honest. I could have gotten that much help from any a a ladies Magazine found at the stars and stripes. I am sure i speak for others. Listen to your patients be there to serve and fulfil the role you profess to provide. A name withheld Frankfurt West Germany editors note a col. Or Ronald r. Blanck commander Frankfurt army regional medical Center replies losing weight sensibly is indeed a difficult often frustrating experience. This is particularly so because the Only Good Way to do it is a slow Day by Dav process and requires a change in ones life style. A i am pleased that you have heard of the nutrition clinic at the 97th general Hospital. Patients can be referred there by a physician to have nutritional needs evaluated and to have a specific diet plan provided be do not follow patients for weight loss but can refer them to any one of a number of self help groups Simi Lar to weight watchers. Should our dietitian feel that a physical examination is needed a referral can be made. A physical exam is generally not necessary to begin a diet but ii certainty is before one uses diet pills. Any diet pills but particularly those prescribed by the physician in Belgium Are dangerous. Not everyone w ill experience Side effects but far too Many do. If you choose to take diet pills or to visit a physician who would be barred from using such pills in the United states and who was asked to leave practice in Germany that is your decision. The purpose of my interview was to w Arn you of the health hazards associated with taking such a Pill. The fact that you lost weight is not surprising anyone would on such medication. The questions Are How Long will the weight loss last what kind of loss is it and what health risks did you expose yourself to the answers Are that the health risks were significant the weight loss was not Only fat but protein from muscle and eventually unless your eating habits change significantly the weight will return with increased percentage of fat. If you do change your eating habits and Are Able to keep the weight off i congratulate you but Point out that you could have lost the weight More safely although Over a longer period of time. Unfortunately there truly is Only one Way to effectively and safely shed pounds the old fashioned Way a diet. We can help provide advice and refer you to support groups but Only you can do it. I encourage you to continue trying and not to rely on writer recalls scene of fatal Patton crash i Don t know who wrote the Story about Gen. George s. Patton or. Which recently appeared in the stars and stripes. The writer did no to have the facts of where he was killed Correct. He was in his automobile going from Mannheim to Heidelberg by Way of the autobahn. It was about a 12-mile trip. There is or was a Little Aii port outside of Mannheim for Small planes. I was driving from Mannheim to Heidelberg with Gen. Hess and his aide a lieutenant. Just before i got to the Airport the Patton car passed us going about 90 Miles an hour. 1 was going about 70. I stopped at the Airport for a minute and then got Back on the autobahn toward Heidelberg. The exit for Heidelberg at that time curved around the train station which was bombed out. The Road came out almost alongside of 7th army Headquarters. Today the building is being used i understand As Usa eur Headquarters. A Road that is now called Patton Road runs alongside of this building. It was connected to the exit. This exit always had Sand on the Road. At the end of the exit was a Little dirt Road. This Road was on the right and had garages for ambulances fire trucks and ordnance repair vehicles. The truck that Patton a Auto crashed into was exiting out of this Road. Patton a car came Down the exit too fast and when the Driver slammed on the brakes he skidded into the left front tire of the truck. Patton must have broken his neck due to the Impact. When i came by the ambulance was just backing up to the Accident scene to put Patton onto a Stretcher. I pulled in front of the ambulance and the lieutenant and i ran Back to the scene. They had Patton on the Stretcher ready to lift him into the ambulance. We got Back into our car and told Gen. Hess that Gen. Patton was turning Gray. Gen. Hess said. A this neck is the most amazing part of this True Story is that mrs. Patton also died from a broken neck about 10 years later. She fell while Riding a horse at the Patton farm in Hamilton mass. Patton s son Gen. Georges Patton Iii. Still lives on the farm today. Also Patton was going to the Schloss hotel on the Side of the Mountain where i was also headed. There were Only about 10 or 12 Gas who saw this Accident. I Hope this letter might Clear up some of the mystery of Patton s death. A Wilfred g. Urquhart 36th division Wii Driver for Gen. Hess an unidentified Soldier examines the automobile in which Gen. George s. Patton or. Right photo was Riding when fatal crash occurred Sas. Fico
