Milford chronicle., 1951-08-10
These Women
DIET
Is A FoUr-Letter Word
By CYNTHIA LOWRY
AP NeWsfeatures Writer


ance companies metropolitan Life)
recently launched one of the most
ambitious programs in business
history. 1t proposes to persuade
25,OOO,O00 Americans to shed $780,
100000 pounds of excess weight.
l cannot restrain myself from
predicting utter and complete fail
ure on the cOmpany's part, even
though they mount their corporate
white horse with the blessings of
the American Medical Association.
the Heart Association and other in
terested organizations.
To lose weight you've gotta diet
and diet. II addition to being a
fOur-letter word to most of us, it
is also a private affair. It's one
thing to join into a popular nat
iOnal movement, like giving blood
to the Red Cross, beating your
neighbOr to a price-war bargain
counter, raising your hem-line an
inch or furnishing your home in
late-Victorian style ike everyone
else is. Going on a diet is something
else, and decision springs from an
entirely different, individualistic
source.
OF course the insurance company
isn't being completely altruistic in
it's interest in getting chubby
Americans to slim down. It is
simply a matter of statistics and
good business. The records prove
that ladies and gentlemen without
excess tonnage have on an average
"a longer life span. Your heirs and
.assignees really can beat the num-
bers, hit the policy jackpot if you
indulge to hearts content in double
hot fudge sundaes with whipped
cream.
I'm sure that too many Of us
Americans are hauling around
more weight than we need. But l
don't think that many of us are
going to be moved to join any fat
destruction campaign conducted on
a mass-appeal basis. Diets come
into a persons life in another way
and no matter what the experts
can do to sugar-coat the process
and make it sound like fun, it's a
grim business requiring fortitude,
constant mOrale-building and un-
tagging determination.
People go on diets under various
circumstances. They are frequently
scared into losing weight by their
doctor who regards them graVely
and talks about heart strain and
blood pressure. In most cases, they
have to be kept good and scared
or they'll forget and slide into the
old mashed potato and banana-split
rut again
Others diet when the placket of
last summers dress stubbOrnly re-
fuses to close, although first the
victim will try to blame it on a new
girdIe. Another excellent stimulus
is the careless remark of a friend
you haven't seen for six months
Why, Harriet, you look wonderful,
but haven't you taken on some
weight?" It usually takes about
three Of these encounters in rapid
succession to really put a girl on
the lamb-chop and lettuce-leaf
regime.
For some time it has been wo-
mems habit to overlook the average
males interest in maintaining his
Waist-line, although a guy who can
still button his World War I-or
even World War II-unifOrm is in
variably a dreadful braggart. The
lads, however, show a marked ten
dency to give up ale and four
course lunches when they have
trouble picking up golf balls or
are the butt Of a few invidiOus
locker-roOm remarks about avoir-
dupOis.
My point is that everybody talks
about dieting but few people ac-
tually get beyond the first week of
one-unless there's a very person
al approach used. This business of
saying that some 25-million men
and women are, at a minimum, 20
pounds overweight and that they'd
probably live longer If they took
it of isn't going to move many of
US to feasting of hard-boiled eggs
and prunes You've got to explain
to me that :, personally, am in dire
straits or am getting to look un~
lovely. Otherwise, all I'll do is |
agree and wonder why the other
guy doesn't get busy.