RYAN O’NEAL has put his troubled son REDMOND on a crash diet in a desperate bid to save the former heroin addict’s life, say sources.
Redmond, who’s the late FARRAH FAWCETT’s only child, has gained a whopping 65 pounds since kicking a stubborn drug habit, and his 62-year-old dad is distraught at the prospect of losing him to an early grave.
“Ryan is heartsick over Redmond’s condition,” disclosed an insider. “He vowed to Farrah he’d look out for him.”
Ryan is so thrilled Redmond is off drugs but worries about his out-of-control appetite.
“It had gotten so bad that Redmond was having chest pains and couldn’t walk long distances,” revealed the source.
The 6-foot-1 redhead dipped below 160 pounds when he was in the throes of his drug addictions but now tips the scales at almost 225 pounds, said the source.
On July 5, his father, who has two other adult sons, was spotted strolling with Redmond on Malibu beach.
Redmond – who’s been arrested numerous times for drug possession as well as a firearms charge – was barely recognizable with a large belly, tree-trunk thick legs and a shaved head.
“He seems to have swapped one addiction for another,” said the source.
As The ENQUIRER reported in April 2012, Ryan is locked in a medical battle, fighting Stage 2 prostate cancer. He also suffers from chronic myelogenous leukemia, which has been in remission since 2006.
Alarmed at his son’s deterioration, the source says Ryan has hired a trainer and a nutritionist to get Redmond off junk food and sodas and onto a calorie-controlled vegetarian diet.
“Ryan realizes he may not have much longer to act,” said the source. “And he wants to leave this world knowing Redmond is thriving.”
