Diabetics and other obese people can get different surgeries to try to find the answer to skinniness, but in nearly all cases this fails after a short time because they haven't learned to change their overall lifestyle, which is less food intake and the commitment of making the hard work of exercising at least half an hour a day, preferably with a class at a health club.

This newspaper did a story about my weight loss over two years ago after I had dropped 90 pounds. Since then, through continuing to exercise, I have dropped 30 more, and I still exercise. My doctor tells me that I am his star patient after going from 280 to 160.

Anyone can do what I have done. It is hard work, but it is worth it, and I will never gain a pound back.

Alan Stone, Minnetonka