Jean Nidetch may not be a household name, but as the founder of Weight Watchers, she single-handedly revolutionized the business of helping people trim down and tone up. After five decades in the health and fitness industry, Nidetch passed away today at her home in Ft. Lauderdale. She was 91 years old. Today, the company that Nidetch founded from her kitchen in Brooklyn is a globally-recognized brand with A-list celebrity spokespersons. Stars like Jessica Simpson have slimmed down with Weight Watchers , and its products are sold in more than 30 countries. Nidetch was overweight throughout her childhood and began coming up with strategies to drop the extra pounds while in her late-30s. She was 5’7″ and weighed 214 pounds at the time and she came up with some simple guidelines (don’t skip meals, eat fish five times a week) that she found worked not only for her, but for the friends that she advised in their own efforts to “reduce.” In 1978, the Heinz corporation purchased Weight Watchers from Nidetch for $71 million. Not bad for a woman who had been living in a one-bedroom apartment just 15 years earlier. Nidetch remained a consultant to the organization up until her death. Click through the gallery below for a full list of celebrities we lost in 2015 . View Slideshow: Celebrities We Lost in 2015
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Jean Nidetch Dies: Weight Watchers Founder Was 91
