Local Weight Loss Winners Featured in National TV Ad

Cincinnati-Collectively, Geoff Pitman and Lynda Bates lost 252 pounds at The Jewish Hospital Weight Management Center. Using liquid meal replacements in the OPTIFAST program, Geoff shed 196 pounds and Lynda lost 56 pounds. Because of their success, and continued ability to keep the weight off, both were selected by OPTIFAST to be featured in a national television commercial that aired this summer in large cities across the country.

Lynda, a registered nurse from Bond Hill, said she was motivated to lose weight when she learned of family members being diagnosed with weight-related illnesses. "There were three people in my family diagnosed with diabetes, and I didn't want to be another statistic," says the married mother of three.

For Geoff, an attorney in Milford, it was when he saw his daughters starting to struggle with weight that he decided to become a healthier role model. "I wanted to model good behavior for them. Plus, I was about to turn 45-years-old, and wanted to be healthier," he says. Their healthy achievements didn't go unnoticed, and in the summer of 2007, OPTIFAST selected them to take part in the commercial, which included flying them to Los Angeles for filming.

"I have a lot more energy now. One of my goals in losing weight was to look nice in a swimsuit. My daughter is on a swim team, so I'm always at the pool. It was deterrent to going before I lost weight. Now I go and have a lot of fun with them," Lynda says.

The Jewish Hospital is an acute care hospital located in Cincinnati's northeast suburbs. It was established in 1850 as the first Jewish hospital in the United States and is part of the Health Alliance, an integrated health care delivery system. To view other Jewish Hospital news releases, go to www.health-alliance.com/pressroom.