New Hyde Park native Mary Putre published her first book, “You Know FAT Mary,” last month, the culmination of five years of research and a lifetime of striving for healthy living.
The book is based on Putre’s own journey through health. After struggling with her weight from an early age and medical complications, including a heart surgery at nine months, she has put her research and experience into 10 chapters.
“Basically, I just want to save a life,” said Putre, who runs Eyecatcher Gifts, a business she created. “There’s no book two, there’s no book three, everything is in this book.”
Born in 1961, her struggles with weight began as an infant, which she credits to being switched from breastfeeding to unregulated baby formula in her first year.
“The way baby formula was manufactured in ‘62, it had vegetable oils, and no nutrients or anything,” she said. “I believe that started the malfunction of my metabolism.”
As she grew up, she felt that she had never learned about nutrition. She ate Kellogg’s cereal, Pop-Tarts, and other foods that were advertised at the time.
“When I was raised, we thought these foods were nutritious, but they’re not,” she said.
“I weighed 212 at 12. At my heaviest, I was 321,” she said, adding that her current weight is 200 and she hopes to lose 30 more pounds.
The title, “You Know FAT Mary,” derives from a memory of a time when she overheard office co-workers talking about her using the phrase.
“That always stuck in my brain,” she said. “I was fat my whole life. I mean nobody wants to be fat.”
After consulting doctors and professionals for years and trying countless diets, she decided to take control and start her own research.
She consulted anatomy books and medical journal articles, and spoke with her doctor, which led her to rely on blood tests to pinpoint the exact nutrients that she was deficient in.
With a more specific understanding of the nutrients she lacked, she was able to come up with a plan to alter her diet and include targeted supplements to meet her needs. She even got a job at The Vitamin Shoppe because of how much she shopped there.
Putre’s research on her own body and the health system has led her to better experiences with medical professionals. After years of countless doctors and medicines, with compounding side effects and complications, she says she has a particular approach to healthcare now.
“Now my doctors are part of my TEAM, and that stands for ‘together, educate, apply, and mentor.’ That’s what we do,” she said. “Medicine is great, but it should be a last resort.”
With her new understanding of nutrients, she said she feels and looks better than ever. She walks regularly on a six-mile route around the village.
She said the book is available digitally on Amazon and her website, and will be available at area libraries and stores when she receives print copies.
