Marilyn Diamond, who with her husband at the time, Harvey Diamond, wrote a blockbuster 1985 diet book, Fit For Life, which attracted millions of adherents to their fruit-and-vegetable-based regimen but which also drew sharp criticism from the medical establishment, died on Sept. 7 in Roanoke, VA. She was 81.

Fit For Life spent 35 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list. The book presented ideas ahead of their time, like veganism, caloric restriction and drinking oat and nut milk to replace dairy.