Half-Ton Mexican Dies After Pleas For Help

990-Pound Man Suffers Heart Failure, Days After Television Appeal

(AP)  A 990-pound, bedridden man who had appealed on Mexican television for help tackling his weight problem died Tuesday of heart failure, his family said.

Emergency officials had to knock down Jose Luis Garza's bedroom wall and load him onto the back of a friend's pickup truck as he fought for his life. The 47-year-old was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital in northern Mexico.

Garza followed in the footsteps of the world's fattest man, fellow Mexican Manuel Uribe of Monterrey, by taking his weight problem public. Garza lived about an hour away from Uribe in the town of Juarez.

Garza said he always struggled with his weight, but that he fell into a desperate cycle of depression and overeating nine months ago after his parents died of natural causes within two weeks of each other. He had been bedridden for four months.

Garza's condition deteriorated over the weekend as he struggled to breathe and eat. At his funeral, family members slammed state officials for not moving Garza to a hospital before he became critically ill.

"If he had received support at the time he asked for it, he would still be with us," said his brother Pedro Garza.

State officials argued there was little they could do.

"The attention he would have received at a hospital would have been the same he got at home," said Julio Cesar Cano, spokesman for the Nuevo Leon state health department. "Moving a patient of that magnitude is very difficult. A normal ambulance won't work."

Uribe, whose record weight of 1,230 pounds earned him a place in the 2008 Guinness Book of Records, has claimed to have lost around 550 pounds by following the Zone Diet invented by Dr. Barry Sears.

Uribe tried to help Garza by sending him kiwis, grapefruit, pears and a protein supplement. Uribe's fiancee, Claudia Solis, delivered the food on Friday evening.

[indianaman13]

Libluv2cnsor? I thought since we''ve had 5 rep presidents in the last 40 years to the dems 2 that censorship would be on the heads of state who''ve been in office the most and longer. Actions speak louder than any lie screamed. Look at the direction this country has gone in since the 60''s, since Republicans have been in power. 5 to 2 Republicans to Demacrats. 30 years compared to 12. Wake up and open your eyes.

[indianaman13]

While Conservative Texas Republicans give teachers guns to take to school. Yea, I bet Jesus would want his followers carrying instruments of death with them everywhere. I can see Jesus now waving and AK-47 preaching peace love and understanding.

[libluv2cnsor]

Posted by brianbwb at 09:08 AM : Oct 08, 2008
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to add, if that was to happen in california and ended up in a jay leno show...liberals would ban excessive food consumption and declare food as ''dangerous''

[libluv2cnsor]

So next time you want to rant about liberals in an article that has nothing to do with the subject, remember that you are one of the worst liberals, as your liberalism helps the fewest people.


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Posted by brianbwb at 09:08 AM : Oct 08, 2008
+ report abuse


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actually liberals PROMOTES this kind of "its not me its them" attitude.

if a liberal did help they would propably hug him and give him more food..

[mytoosense]

The moral of this story:

Never eat in bed.

[runningralph]

I don''t blame the people who fed that guy. They had probably tried for years to reform him. Most likely he had been useless dead weight since he was about 250. They eventually got tired of trying and let him kill himself. Wasted space turned into useful space.

[questionnews]

The family could have just placed food at the end of a treadmill or at the top of a hill & told him if wants that platter of fried chicken, it''s the treadmill or the hill.

[easeup-2009]

I sure as hell wouldn''t want to be a pall-bearer....

[gowerd]

You are all sick who bring politics into this story, I saw an article on tv about this person, and he was sweet and kind hearted. Sure the person(s) who fed him are to blame, he knew what the consequences would be,what else did he have to do but to eat? He was at fault and it cost him his life. A sad story.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by mrcrosby1

You are funny, the party that you will probably vote for, has followed liberal policies far larger that those who actually call themselves liberals, the only differences being the cost (yours are larger) and the welfare recipients. (in your case, the already wealthy)

So next time you want to rant about liberals in an article that has nothing to do with the subject, remember that you are one of the worst liberals, as your liberalism helps the fewest people.