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Faith-Based Diets: The Key to Weight Loss?; Gas Line Explodes in Massachusetts

Aired April 28, 2006 - 14:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: There is no shortage of deadly diseases in Africa, and right now in Angola, the enemy is cholera. The group Doctors Without Borders says 20,000 people have been infected and hundreds have died in the past ten weeks. Cholera spreads through contaminated food or water and can be cured with fluids and antibiotics. Still, doctors say they're seeing an average of 30 new cases and one death every hour.
If faith can move mountains, can it also help move the number on the scale? CNN's Heidi Collins meets some believers who say faith- based diets showed them the way to weight loss.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALES: In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the looks of the bagels and cream cheese piled next to the holy water and rosary beads, you'd never know this was a diet meeting.

Jackie Halgash is a registered nurse, a 51-year-old mother of three, and meets weekly with her sisters and other nurses to do "The Light Weigh," a faith-based weight loss program.

They read Bible passages.

JACKIE HALGASH, LOST 100 LBS ON "THE LIGHT WEIGH": "A broken and contrite heart, o God, thou will not despise." Short and sweet. I just think that I came to this program because I was broken. I felt I had nowhere to go, and I felt like I couldn't do it by myself.

COLLINS: And forget about Atkins and South Beach. Instead of counting carbs, these dieters count their blessings.

JOAN CAHILL, LOST 55 LBS ON "THE LIGHT WEIGH": When I came to this program, I was a desperate person. I had no place to go but up. And "The Light Weight" just showed me a promise of deeper faith, a thinner body. And it was a light shining in the darkness for me.

COLLINS: For Jackie, that darkness was 245 pounds. She tried every diet she knew and couldn't keep the weight off.

HALGASH: I was in the grocery store and I was shopping, and it hit me that there isn't anything in this whole grocery store -- I could fill my cart with all my favorite foods, and I wouldn't be satisfied. So what am I trying to satisfy?

COLLINS: Despite losing 60 pounds, she still felt fat.

HALGASH: I looked at myself from behind, and I thought, oh my God, you're such a pig, you're such a pig. You haven't changed at all.

COLLINS: Three years later, Jackie has changed. She lost 100 pounds. She credits "The Light Weigh" and its philosophy of not eating when you're sad or lonely or bored, only when you're hungry.

Suzanne Fowler is the founder of "The Light Weigh." She went on her first diet in third grade and watched her weight balloon after the birth of her sixth child.

SUZANNE FOWLER, FOUNDER, "THE LIGHT WEIGH": The world's dieting had put me into a shortage mentality, which is what all dieting does to people. Food is either good or bad. They're either being good or bad. And so when this happens, it begins to control you.

Here we are with a restaurant portion, wow! This could feed an entire family.

COLLINS: Fowler has no medical credentials, but dishes out advice. Her key point, only eat fist-sized portions at meal times. Go ahead, have doughnuts, but in moderation. There are no forbidden foods.

We contacted a registered dietitian, who said the problem is some people may eat cheesecake all day, and become nutritionally-deficient, a charge Fowler answers by saying when dieters are at peace with God, they don't need the junk food to fill the void.

COLLINS (on camera): Jackie and her sisters are among hundreds of thousands of Americans following faith-based diets. They have found success, but does everyone? Other religious dieters may be destined to fail if they go looking for weight-loss miracles.

MARIE GRIFFITH, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY: Failure really is about failing God. I mean, it can really be about not having the faith, not having the discipline, not being obedient enough to God. Are you going to hell if you can't lose the weight and keep it off?

COLLINS: Marie Griffith is a religion professor at Princeton University who has studied Bible-based diets. She worries some followers may think they're more lovable to God as a size six than 16.

But when Jackie gets on a scale now...

HALGASH: All right!

COLLINS: ... she's happy. She has kept few reminders of her fat days, just some old cotton pajamas.

(on camera): 3X?

HALGASH: Yes, it's a 3X.

COLLINS (voice-over): The real difference for her, Jackie says, is what she's achieved through prayer and sacrifice.

HALGASH: Will I struggle? Yes. Never like before, but I'll struggle. But he'll keep me close because my heart is open and my mind is open. And I'm a different person than I was on the inside. That's why I'm never going to gain weight again.

COLLINS: Heidi Collins, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: On CNN weekend "HOUSECALL," a closer look at alternative methods of weight loss. That's Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.

Meantime, let's go straight to the news desk and get more information on a breaking story -- Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred, we're going to take you to Needham, Massachusetts now. That is a community that is southwest of Boston. Take a look at these pictures. There's the map of the area that we're talking about. And now to the pictures. A natural gas explosion has taken place, and it has badly, from the information we've been getting, injured one man and forced the evacuation of the surrounding area.

My goodness, take a look at these pictures from our affiliate WCVB out of Boston. The line feeding that flame, Fred, has to be shut off, obviously. And firefighters are basically -- as you can see, they're just sort of walking around the area, just trying to contain it as best they can.

But once again, one person badly injured from this natural gas explosion. Once again, this is in Needham, Massachusetts. You see the flame there shooting out of a hole in the street there. Thanks to our affiliate, again, WCVB in Boston, for these pictures.

We'll keep an eye on it, Fred, and bring you the latest information.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much, Tony.

HARRIS: You're welcome.

WHITFIELD: The news keeps coming, we'll keep bringing it to you. More of LIVE FROM next.

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WHITFIELD: The last act of a desperate man? Nah. The ruckus at the top of the Empire State Building yesterday was caused by a stunt junkie called Jeb Corliss. The Discovery Channel host and veteran base jumped tried to disguise himself and his parachute in a fat suit, but security guards had been tipped off, and they grabbed Corliss before he could jump from the 86-floor observation deck and handcuffed him to the railing. Corliss faces charges of reckless endangerment and assault. No word on whether he'll also be charged for the piece of fence they had to remove to take him into custody.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Well, straight ahead, entertainment news with A.J. Hammer of "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT." A.J., what you got on tap?

A.J. HAMMER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, the best in daytime television is going to be walking the red carpet tonight in Hollywood, and it looks like "The View" is changing on ABC. I'll have all the details when LIVE FROM continues.

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WHITFIELD: So back now to Tony Harris, who is in the newsroom with some developing news out of Massachusetts -- Tony.

HARRIS: That's right. Fred, we can update you on that story out of Needham, Massachusetts, a community southwest of Boston. We can tell you now that the flames that we have showed a short time ago that were coming out of that hole in the street there tied to a gas explosion, that the flames have been capped.

We can also tell you that several homes in that community had been -- this was a residential neighborhood. Several homes in that community had been evacuated, a nearby middle school. The officials there at the school actually held the students. It was time for the to be released for the weekend, but because of the gas explosion they held the children but now buses are on the way. Parents have been notified, and those kids are on their way home.

Here is what happened. There was some construction going on in that neighborhood, and there was a worker who was working on a gas line. He had some kind of an accident, struck the line in a way that led to this explosion. It first started as an on the ground, and then it caused this huge hole in the street, probably what you see the workers now working on.

And we had this flame a short time ago. This flame coming right out of the ground. For a while there all the firefighters could do was just sort of contain the situation. That's the picture I was referring to just a moment ago with this flame coming out of the ground, and the firefighters doing pretty much what they could do at the time until the line could be shut off.

But we can tell you now that the flame has been capped and life slowly is getting back to normal in that neighborhood. But clearly that area that is under construction now -- the area that created that huge hole, where you see the workers working now in the street there, it's going to be quite some time before repairs are made on that street. And that's a situation we'll continue to watch for you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Tony, for that update.

HARRIS: Sure.

WHITFIELD: Live and let liver? Animal lovers are applauding the city council of Chicago for banning foie gras at city restaurants. For all of you non-foodies out there, foie gras is the liver from a goose that's been force-fed by having a tube repeatedly shoved down its throat, an inhumane practice says Alderman Joe Moore, who sponsored the ban.

But Mayor Richard Daley tells "The Chicago Sun Times," let's get some priorities, people, quote, "we have children getting killed by gang leaders and dope dealers. We have real issues here in the city."

The tears are sure to flow tonight in Los Angeles. Oh, the drama. The daytime drama, that is. Soap fans, whether you're young or restless -- get it -- you'll see your favorites walk across the red carpet tonight. I did not write that, although it's very clever, A.J. I like it. What do you got?

HAMMER: Well, it's a big day for daytime television. First, let's talk about "The View." It looks like it is changing. The ABC talk fest is getting a new host. Now, you remember, a few weeks ago, Katie Couric announced that she was leaving "The Today Show" to anchor "The CBS Evening News." And just after that the news came that "The View's" Meredith Vieira would be taking over Katie's old job.

Well, that of course left a chair wide open next to the other "View" co-hosts, Starr Jones Reynolds, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Barbara Walters. It appears the newest woman joining "The View" is this lady right here, actress, activist and the mother of four, Rosie O'Donnell.

Very familiar territory for Rosie. Of course she hosted her own self-titled talk show for several years, and she took home six Emmys in the process. Now, no official word has come down from the network about O'Donnell just yet. But the rumors have been flying around. And they are coming from several sources. It's very strong that this is going to take place.

The formal announcement actually is expected to come tonight when the 33rd annual daytime Emmy awards take place. I am sure they will keep you glued in for the whole thing.

Well, the biggest night in daytime television is making it's debut at the Hollywood Kodak Theater. All of your favorite soap stars, your game show hosts, talk show favorites, all on hand. "Dancing with the Stars" Tom Bergeron and Kelly Monaco are hosting the event tonight.

Rich Springfield, who you may remember as Dr. Noah Drake, from "General Hospital" on a couple of different occasions playing that part, hanging up the scrubs tonight, so he can show up with a medley of his own hits to get things fired up.

Who will win, obviously, still a secret. But one trophy that we know that is definitely going to be handed out to a person who doesn't have a familiar name but his voice certainly recognized to millions of kids and adults alike, Caroll Spinney, the man who is inside that guy, Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on "Sesame Street." Well, deserved lifetime achievement award going to him tonight.

The 33rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards are tonight 8 p.m. on ABC.

And tonight on "Showbiz Tonight," star-spangled outrage. Big music stars redo America's national anthem in Spanish. We are going to fill you in on why so many are so angry on "Showbiz Tonight" at 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern on CNN Headline Prime.

Fred, I know you've been reporting on this story and its heated debate. Expect some Friday night fireworks tonight.

WHITFIELD: Oh, I don't doubt it, because some of the e-mails that we've gotten, there is smoke on some of these e-mails.

HAMMER: And I know they are coming nonstop too.

WHITFIELD: They are indeed. We're going to read more of them later on as well.

Thanks so much, A.J.

HAMMER: Have a good weekend.

WHITFIELD: Well, as we mentioned, "The Star Spangled Banner" in Spanish. It's making some people see red. We will read some of those e-mails, as I just mentioned, coming up. The news keeps coming. We will keep brining it to you. More LIVE FROM next.

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