Comments on Al Roker

As we well know, Al Roker, beloved anchor person on TV, had gastric bypass surgery a year ago. He has lost 100 lbs and seems to be doing well with the surgery. That is wonderful to hear.

1. Roker appears to have made the decision, very much influenced by his father's admonition to "lose weight" (even though his father died of the repercussions of smoking, not obesity) and his wife's constant pressure (Deborah Roberts is a TV anchor with a body to kill for, who appears to be somewhat younger than Roker. She has admitted to bothering Roker a lot about what he ate and his weight).

Making a commitment to lose weight should be a decision for the individual alone. It is not wise to make such a serious commitment especially to have one's body changed, on the pressure from those around us.

Restricting food and portions is difficult. In a person with a gastric bypass, because such major modifications have been made in their body, the first year, they are not really hungry - I believe that this first year is when the body adapts to the plumbing changes - so restricting food is not difficult. But after the first year or so when they are healed up, it becomes a battle royale again. At that time, they face the same issues they faced previously. In some ways "the tool" helps (the pouch fills up etc) but in other ways, the "tool" can cause some disadvantages such as a damaged metabolism from the quick weight loss.

All in all, if a person is ready to REALLY make that commitment, they can make it at Weight Watchers (interestingly enough, one could attend WW meetings for 32 years for the price of one WLS) and avoid the surgery. If they are not ready for the commitment, they will face regaining problems after they heal from the gastric bypass, unless of course, they become ill (constant nausea, vomiting, bowel obstruction etc) which will keep them thin but at what price. (That being said, some folks do feel that this type of price, though high, is worth being slender - everyone is different).

That's why this decision to have surgery should not be made based on the pressure from others.

2. I feel that the news services making a poster child out of Al Roker is not fair to Al. It demands too much of him and basically exploits him. He should be allowed his privacy if he wishes it. That he kept it secret so long might suggest that he WANTED privacy about this which the paparazzi who even ILLEGALLY pulled his hospital records, would not allow him. We need to start treating our celebrities better and stop exploiting them for our own purposes.

3. I am really concerned with the heavy influence poster kids have on the decision making of the public. We seem to forget that celebrities seldom tell the truth about what is going on with their health, ESPECIALLY if it is thought to possibly hurt their careers. Be very clear, I don't think celebrities have ANY OBLIGATION to tell the truth since it is THEIR OWN BUSINESS however, we certainly should be aware of the fact that it's the rule rather than the exception that we will not have access to much information about any celebrity's health status.

We have seen this with Olympic Gold Medalist Tara Lipinski. Tara, badly injured from the Olympics with a back injury, a serious hip problem and a knee problem, told the news services she was leaving competitive skating, because she wanted to be with her family. The truth which she told a few of us fans was that her doctor informed her that the only way he'd ALLOW her to do the Olympics with the heavy extent of her injuries is if she promises to stop competing right after. She recently, after skating more and more poorly and falling on her jumps and being in excruciating pain, has been pulled off the ice for an indefinite amount of time. But it is still difficult ferreting out the real scoop even from the fan sites. (I to date, have not been able to find out what is wrong with her knee!)

We also saw a similar thing with Callista Flockhart. She claimed (when accused of being anorexic) to weigh 105 lbs (which at 5'6" is low BMI) and just have "a very high metabolism". Some friends of hers vouched for her claims that she "eats like a horse". This went on for 2 or 3 years until the day she checked OUT of the eating disorders clinic and proudly announced she was now 94 lbs (instead of the 89 lb wt she was when she checked in).

Celebrities do not tell the truth about their health. I'm not saying they SHOULD or have to tell the truth. It is obviously their own business, however, we absolutely DO NOT KNOW if Al Roker is having an easy time with his gastric bypass or not. Watching him is not a good reason to make that serious life changing decision since our information about him is very limited.

4. Al was concerned that he might not be as popular as a thin man as he was, fat. I feel this is a foolish concern. Most of our funniest comedians were slender. It's the personality and talent, not the girth which counts.

That being said, what seems to have happened is that he is not the same jolly guy he was before surgery. Several individuals, both pro and con surgery have observed this. And although he is "thinner" he is by no means, "slender". Here are a couple of comments I've read:

>>>I watch Al on tv just about every day. He does not seem very well on some
days...others he is ok. I have also heard he is already having problems.<<<<

>>>>I was watching one of the news magazine shows about 5-6 years ago, where Al Roker's wife, Deborah Roberts , was interviewing a supersize woman about weight issues. I'll never forget the look on Deborah's face as she asked this woman, "you really think you're healthy at that size?" To me her face expressed scorn and disgust. She shook her head as she said it. I thought, How does she live with Al Roker and have this opinion?? So
now we know! <<<<<

Alice, editor of Radiance Online,

www.radiancemagazine.com
Since 1984

>>>As a "local" to person to this news personality...I have heard just the
opposite. He IS having problems (mostly emotional some sickness)...and I
am sorry...but when I watch him on TV now...he seems to have lost some of
his OOOMF.<<<<

I think we all wish Al the best with his surgery and his life. But I would also hope that those who are considering surgery, make their decisions based on their own research and their own needs and not because someone in their life has a difficult time with size and certainly a decision should not be made because of the experiences of a celebrity or poster child. Remember, all weight loss programs, whether good or bad, have their poster children. How someone else did with a diet or weight loss solution even if they ARE totally telling the truth, has nothing to do with how WE will do with the same solution or how OUR BODIES will take to it.