On this Day 1974: ‘Spring Diet’

OTD, March 12th, 1974…

Reg Harcourt report for ATV Today on the slimming attemps of Mrs. Shirley Turner from Nottingham.

However, it wasn’t the usual cutting down on food and exercising more feature as Mrs Turner had gone to extreme measures in order to help battle the pounds by having her teeth clamped together in order to aid her success.

Reg interviews Shirley who describes how the hospital clamped her teeth, he also speaks to her husband about the reactions from family and friends and questions about his own weight. Shirley is seen making liquid food as part of her diet.

Healthline notes that ‘Jaw wiring is known in the medical community as maxillomandibular fixation. This procedure connects your lower and upper jaw bones together.’ they add that, ‘ Jaw wiring is not a commonly used method for weight loss. There was a period in the 1970s and 1980s when doctors wired shut the jaws of people for up to a year to help them lose weight.’

‘People did lose weight initially when their jaws were wired shut, comparable to those who received bariatric surgery, but many of them regained the weight after doctors removed the jaw wires.’ Healthline concludes.