Dr. Siegal's(R) COOKIE DIET(TM) Creator Sanford Siegal, D.O., M.D., Weighs In on Madonna's 'My husband didn't want to have sex on the cookie diet' Remarks

Dr. Siegal's(R) COOKIE DIET(TM) Creator Sanford Siegal, D.O., M.D., Weighs In on Madonna's 'My husband didn't want to have sex on the cookie diet' Remarks

Renowned physician, author and weight loss expert Dr. Sanford Siegal, known to generations of dieters as the Cookie Doctor(TM), devotes current CookieDiet.com blog to the impact of obesity and hypothyroidism on sex drive

MIAMI, April 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Obesity expert and author Dr. Sanford Siegal, best known as the creator of the popular Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET weight loss system and hunger controlling foods, today announced that he has posted on the www.CookieDiet.com web site a new entry in his personal blog that addresses recent comments made by Madonna pertaining to husband Guy Ritchie's loss of libido while on "the cookie diet". Madonna made her comments last week during an interview on the Johnjay and Rich radio show which originates on KZZP-FM in Phoenix, Arizona. Coincidentally, Dr. Siegal's company is a frequent advertiser on the station.

(Photo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080414/CLM053 )

"I've treated more than 500,000 patients with Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET in the thirty-three years since I created it. While my cookies curb their hunger for food, I can't recall any patients reporting that they lower their sexual appetite, too," said Dr. Siegal. "I mean, seriously, my cookies taste good enough but I can't imagine someone preferring them to sex."

In his blog, Dr. Siegal, known to generations of dieters as the "Cookie Doctor", discusses the negative effect that being overweight has on one's sex drive. According to Dr. Siegal, a common complaint from his patients is that as their weight increases their libido declines. Their loss of sex drive often contributes to strained relationships which, in turn, reinforces their negative self image.

"There are many factors that can contribute to a reduced sex drive in overweight people," said Dr. Siegal. "For some the problem is psychological. For others there may be physical causes such as hypothyroidism. My experience with my own patients during the past fifty years is that when we correct their metabolic problem and get them to a healthy weight their sex drive significantly rebounds."

In his most recent book, Is Your Thyroid Making You Fat? (2000, Warner Books), Dr. Siegal lists a host of cruel symptoms of hypothyroidism, including obesity and an extreme difficulty losing weight; infertility; loss of libido; and depression. He also questions his fellow physicians' reliance on unreliable laboratory tests while ignoring the obvious symptoms of the condition.

Dr. Siegal's weight loss system features his hunger-controlling diet cookies, shakes and soup which contain his secret blend of certain amino acids, the basic components of food proteins. He conceived the idea of a cookie-based diet in the early 1970's while writing a book on food substances that suppress hunger without drugs. In 1975, after years of experimentation on family and friends, he perfected his formula and baked it into a cookie. Acceptance by his patients was immediate and soon Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET was the exclusive approach to weight loss at his South Florida medical practice, Siegal Medical Group. More than 200 other doctors have used Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET hunger-controlling foods in their own practices.

At Siegal Medical Group, Dr. Siegal's patients are instructed to eat six cookies a day to control hunger. No other food is eaten during the day. In the evening, his patients eat a reasonable dinner consisting of six ounces of chicken, fish, or turkey and a cup of green vegetables. His typical patient who follows his instructions exactly loses about fifteen pounds per month. Dr. Siegal strongly encourages anyone who intends to follow any weight loss diet to do so under a doctor's supervision.

In recent years, others have attempted to capitalize on the success of Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET by introducing knockoff products. Some of these have infringed on Dr. Siegal's intellectual property rights which the 79 year old physician has vigorously and successfully defended.

"What distinguishes Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET from the knockoffs that have popped up recently is that there's real substance and science behind it. The secret protein blend to which the cookies, shakes and soup owe their hunger- suppressing quality was personally developed by Dr. Siegal after years of trial and error," said Matthew Siegal, President and CEO of Dr. Siegal's Direct Nutritionals, LLC. "While others may try to ride our wave by copying our name and messaging, only Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET has the original formula and a 33 year track record with more than 500,000 people."

Dr. Siegal is frequently profiled in the news media. He has appeared on ABC's Good Morning America, Fox News Channel, E! Entertainment Network, WCBS- TV, and many others. Recently, Good Evening Arizona on KTVK-TV in Phoenix aired an interview with Dr. Siegal and Warren Thompson, a college student who lost 73 lbs. For several days after it aired, the segment ranked among the Top 5 Most Popular Stories on the station's web site, azfamily.com. A video of the interview can be viewed at http://www.azfamily.com/health/weightloss/stories/phoenix_local_health_2008040 2_cookiediet.265f1b74.html. (due to the length of the URL, it may be necessary to copy this link into your internet browser)

About Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET

Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET hunger-controlling foods and nutritional supplements are available online at www.CookieDiet.com; by phone 24/7 at 866- 464-5595 toll-free; and from select doctors, drug stores and retailers. They're also available at Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET kiosks in Paradise Valley Mall, Chandler Fashion Center, and Scottsdale Fashion Square in Phoenix, AZ; Boca Raton Town Center Mall in Boca Raton, FL; Dadeland Mall in Miami, FL; The Galleria Mall in Ft. Lauderdale, FL; and Moorestown Mall near the Philadelphia suburb of Moorestown, NJ. Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET and Cookie Doctor are trademarks of SM Licensing Corp.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Photo: NewsCom:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080414/CLM053
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN16
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: CookieDiet.com

CONTACT: Media Relations, Dr. Siegal's Direct Nutritionals, LLC
(CookieDiet.com), +1-202-664-1172 Ext. 705

Web site:

http://www.cookiediet.com/

-------
Profile: intent