European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 8, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                After the fast fear of food to talk show personality Oprah Winfrey has regained 17 pounds since rapidly shedding 67 on a liquid formula diet in 1989. By Molly o Neill new York times Joy seals desk on the second floor of Zabar s was a fortress of envelopes full of chocolate Flavoured formula diet powder. The Aroma of bread and pastries Rose from the store below but Segal was immune to its temptation. She smiled triumphantly. Quot in be lost 135 pounds Quot said Segal 39, the assistant controller of the Manhattan food store. Quot i Haven t weighed this Little since fourth  Segal is poised like a victorious Warrior starting a new life. She has been on her liquid formula diet since May 11, 1989, and now 20 pounds past her goal she can Chase her two children and she can fasten an Airliner s seat Belt. But she is terrified to eat solid food again Quot i could be like a Junkie and not  Segal is not alone. It has been 16 months since Oprah Winfrey rapidly dropped 67 pounds on a liquid formula diet and contributed to a nationwide Renaissance of the weight loss method. And nearly a million americans Are trying to establish Normal eating habits after the fast health professionals estimate. Winfrey has regained 17 pounds but refuses to comment on the after effects of the diet some people such As Segal develop a fear of food and become dependent on formula diets. Others Binge and suffer humiliating weight gains. Few maintain their lower weights. A five year study by or. Thomas Wadden at the University of Pennsylvania showed 98 percent of All dieters regain their weight within five years. The liquid diet Industry in the United states the medical profession entrepreneurs major pharmaceutical companies and individual dieters Are All hungry for a Sliver of Success. But interviews Over two months with 31 patients after fasting and recent medical studies suggest the nature of the formula diets could Lead to psychological and physiological burdens that limit the diets Long term effectiveness. Quot last year everybody knew somebody who a lost 100 pounds on a fast Quot says Barry Adler president of diet fast a formula diet program. Quot now everybody knows somebody who lost 100 pounds and gained Back 120.&Quot across the United states dozens of obesity specialists have noticed an increase in patients on the fast and Binge roller coaster Over the past three years. At a conference of the american federation of the american societies for experimental biology in Washington or. Adam Trenowski director of human nutrition at the University of Michigan presented findings that Yoyo dieting cycles of rapid weight loss and gain frequently associated with liquid formula diets creates a craving for calorie dense mixtures of sugar and fat. Or. Theodore Vanitallie a consultant to the United weight control corp., a formula weight loss program based in Englewood Cliffs n.j., has concluded rapid weight loss can be sustained Only by Long term psychological support and nutritional education. He has been in the Vanguard of obesity study for 27 years. In the past 10 years the medical profession Lent credence to the liquid diets by developing Safe liquid formulas and More effective monitoring of their physiological consequences. But science has succeeded primarily in teaching people How to live without food. Living with food on the other hand while maintaining weight loss requires a new psychology toward eating. Acknowledging the potent psychological area Between feast and famine the Premier liquid formula diets like opt fast and United weight control corp., Are using behaviour modification training. Quot we have shifted from acute intervention to the Long term reality of keeping the weight off Quot said Jim Parsons a vice president of opt fast programs Quot but if there Are 100 chapters in the maintenance program to be written we re Only on chapter  in an Effort to treat the morbidly obese those with at least 100 pounds or even half their body weight to lose or. Saul Genuth and or. Victor Vertes developed the 320-calorie, Milkshake like formula derived from milk and egg protein that eventually became opt fast. A spate of copycat formulas followed some made from inferior protein with limited nutritional value. Bill Gregg a spokesman for the food and drug administration noted that in 1978, the Public health service attributed 17 deaths to an Over the counter liquid protein powder and the Fra issued a warning about such products. It still recommends a doctors supervision for any severely restricted weight loss diet he said. But for patients with weight related life threatening medical conditions the Low calorie formulas provided the quickest Way to lose weight. Today s formula diets Are derived from highly nutritional protein from milk eggs or soy. They contain More protein fiber and calories than earlier formulas and Trace elements that had been inadequate in earlier formulas. Still the formulas which Range from 400 to 800 calories a Day severely restrict caloric intake and cause rapid slimming that can Lead to physiological changes like loss of body protein and fluids losses that can affect the liver and heart. In the Early 1980s, medical professionals developed monitoring programs for these potential Side effects and the programs became lucrative. A weeks Supply of formula diet typically costs $15 to make and is sold to patients for $35 to $50. In addition medical supervision can amount to about $80 a week per patient. Weight loss became a tidy source of profit for some hospitals and private physicians but there is a limited Market of Quot morbidly obese Quot americans five million. But 65 million americans Are slightly overweight. Quot the Money Isnit in people who Are medically at risk a says or. Marvin w. Leifer of St. Vincent a Hospital in Westchester county . Quot the Money is in the cosmetically obese with 20 to 30 pounds to  aiming at that audience the formula diet Industry maintained an air of medical legitimacy but the air got thinner As popular demand soared. Actual medical monitoring gave Way to an image of supervision by a doctor in weight loss clinics some salespeople even donned doctors White jackets. Entrepreneurs such As Adler of diet fast began producing diet formulas and private doctors offices. Quot after Oprah it was like the Hula hoop craze Quot said Adler. Liquid formula diets from a trickle became a mass Market tidal wave. The Day Winfrey broadcast her Success with opt fast the formula diet company says it received one million Telephone Calls. By 1988, according to Market data enterprises a research group in Lynbrook ., diet clinics were a $10-billion-a-year Industry in the United states and Hospital sponsored programs generated $5.5 billion More. Liquid formula diets Are now the fastest growing segment of the american weight loss Industry Market data has reported. The promises and the safety of the biggest and most profitable weight loss programs have sparked a congressional probe. Rep. Ron Wyden d-ore., held a hearing on the health risks and advertising practices of commercial weight loss programs a $33 billion a year Industry that Wyden says is largely unregulated. Furthermore he said Quot the worrisome trend is away from exercise and toward liquid protein diets virtually All of them sponsored by physicians and hospitals and so called a fast diets a which ignore nutritional  among the witnesses who testified before the House subcommittee on regulation business opportunities and Energy that Wyden Heads was a Florida woman who is suing nutria system alleging that the diet caused the formation of gallstones which required the removal of her gallbladder. Page 16 a a a the stars and stripes tuesday May 8,1990