I still miss my mom.
Written: Jul 22 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: My mom lost 47 lbs. in about 7 weeks.
Cons: My mom died on this program.
The Bottom Line: My mom lost 47 pounds and her life in the 7 weeks she used this program. Nearly 14 years later, her presence is still missed.
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| gopeanut's Full Review: Optifast Program |
My mom worked for a hospital in North Carolina that sponsored the Optifast program. She weighed 247 pounds, and she really did want to lose weight. At the urging of her boss, she enrolled in the Optifast program. The year was 1988, and her three children were 14, 12, and 10 years old. Our mom followed the diet program very closely. She did not eat any solid food, she only consumed the liquid "shakes". She kept various bottles of flavoring on hand like vanilla, orange, and maple to make the drinks taste better. Even on Thanksgiving, she did not eat dinner--I remember that she just sat at the table with us while we ate. She lost a considerable amount of weight--47 pounds in about 7 weeks. I remember she had noticed that she was losing hair, and that sometimes she felt a little dizzy. One Monday evening after work, she went to the weekly meeting, a mini-health exam and "pep talk" to keep participants motivated. At that meeting, her blood was taken and sent to a lab (a customary procedure). Her potassium level was dangerously low, but she did not know. She came home, packed lunches for her children to take to school the next day, watched television, and went to bed. She did not wake up the next morning. Her heart had stopped beating. Potassium levels regulate electrolytes which can be oversimplified as "messages" the brain sends to the heart to beat. Sometime in the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday morning, my mom's brain quit sending those messages. Of course, Optifast, the hospital where my mom worked, and Sandoz (the pharmaceutical company behind Optifast) all denied that the Optifast program was to blame. My family sued, and unfortunately, settled out of court. I was a minor at the time, but if I could have had my way, I would have made sure that we went to court with the goal of having Optifast yanked off the market. I am personally aware of another woman who was on the Optifast program who died after passing out in her bathroom a few years after my mom died. Her two children were preschool age. I also understand that at least a dozen other people have died while on this program, many of whom had their causes of death listed as "cardiac arrest" (as did my mom). I know that thousands of people have used Optifast without dying, but it's absolutely not worth the risk. My mom didn't get to see her children grow up. Of all the products touted in America, no product has affected my life as much as Optifast. In fact, it changed my life. And it ended my mom's.
Recommended:
No
Approximate Monthly Cost (US$) your life
Food Variety Restrictions You eat the same thing for months
Restrictiveness of Portions Practically starvation
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Epinions.com ID:
gopeanut
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Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
Program Coordinator for a private preschool/ consultant and trainer for out of school time programs
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