DR. COOPER'S FABULOUS FRUCTOSE DIET

Granulated, tablet-ed, and liquified fructose, the better-than-glucose sugar, is the latest snake oil in the weight loss market. When Dr. Cooper adds it to a low-calorie, high-protein regimen it becomes the Fabulous Fructose Diet (FFD). To lose weight on the FFD, we should (surprise!) eat less, but since we gobble down fructose six times a day it seems like more. Cooper says his dieters never feel tired or hungry and so never cheat on the diet--the cause, as he sees it, of other diets' failure. Try as he might, Cooper can't resolve the problem of will-power versus temptation; just to make sure, he includes a chapter on firming up flabby will-power. Here he counsels us to ""beware of feeders,"" raise our low self-esteem, and when under stress take a deep breath. The menus and recipes are unappealing to the point of perversity: Orange Delight Dressing made of oil, vinegar, and orange-flavored liquid protein; between-meal snacks of fructose, potassium tabs, and multiple vitamins washed down with ""Kool-Aid type beverage."" Enough.