In 1988, Oprah Winfrey dragged a red cart full of fat around the set of her television show to represent the 70 pounds she claimed to have lost on a liquid diet. She gave up the diet just a few years later, but in the decades that followed, her fluctuating weight and the resulting biases continued to be frequent topics of discussion for both Winfrey and the media.
Now Winfrey, 69, has joined the diet discussion again. On Wednesday, he revealed that he had started taking weight control medication. The announcement comes as demand has increased for new drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound that can help people lose weight, in part by suppressing appetite.
“The fact that there is a medically approved recipe to control weight and stay healthier feels, in my time, like a relief, like a redemption, like a gift and not something to hide behind and again can make fun of,” he told People Magazine. Winfrey said she decided to start taking a weight-loss drug after hosting a panel discussion that she said liberated her from the myth that weight depends only on a person's self-control.
“I realized that I had been blaming myself for being overweight all these years, and I have a disposition that no amount of willpower can control,” said Winfrey, who controlled the medications she was taking. not named. A representative for Winfrey did not respond to a request for comment.
In the last year, Ozempic and similar drugs have changed conventional wisdom about willpower, weight and stigma. Perhaps no one embodies the cultural debate surrounding these issues better than Winfrey.
“We can see Oprah as a crystallization of a broader struggle that many of us have with our bodies, namely gaining and losing weight, when in reality our bodies simply feel more comfortable at a higher weight than what is considered socially acceptable said Kate Manne, associate professor of philosophy at Cornell University and author of a forthcoming book on fat bias.
This tension highlights the complexity of treating obesity, said Melanie Jay, director of the Comprehensive Obesity Program at NYU Langone, who participated in the recent panel with Winfrey.
“No one in the world has proven that he is more motivated to lose weight, that he has the wherewithal to do it, and yet he has very publicly lost or gained weight and has done so throughout his life really demanded a lot,” said Jay. “This really shows that obesity is a disease that needs to be controlled and the shame surrounding it is not helpful.”
Winfrey's public comments on weight loss reflected national conversations about diet culture, the body positivity movement that emerged in response, and now society's slow acceptance of weight loss medications. Weight, said Adrienne Bitar, professor of American studies at Cornell University and author of Diet and the Disease of Civilization.
“His weight loss journey parallels all American dieting experiences,” Bitar said.
Now Winfrey has joined the many people turning to a new class of weight control drugs. As these medications become more popular, the entire nutrition industry has also turned its attention to them. Notably, WW International, the company formerly known as Weight Watchers, which for decades proclaimed that strict control of diet could lead to weight loss, this spring announced its acquisition of Sequence, a telehealth platform that provides access to medications like Ozempic. Winfrey has invested in the company and is a member of the board.
In her announcement, Winfrey said she was taking the drug as a “maintenance measure.” Generally, people who start taking this type of medication lose weight for about the first 18 months and then plateau. When people stop taking a weight loss medication, they tend to gain weight again. Winfrey claimed her doctor prescribed the drug and that it was part of a larger health program that included walking and hydration.
Bitar suspected that Winfrey, a media pundit, likely made the announcement to sharpen her own narrative rather than leave room for further speculation about her weight loss methods. Winfrey had not previously revealed whether she had tried the medication.
Like many other women in the industry, Winfrey has been subjected to “harsh and cruel coverage of her issues with weight and health” throughout her career, Bitar said. In a 1985 interview on The Tonight Show, Joan Rivers scolded her for gaining weight, telling Winfrey, “You shouldn't let that happen; You are very sweet”.
That criticism took an emotional toll, Winfrey told People. “Making fun of me has been a public sport for 25 years.”
Even now, when experts say it's never been clearer that losing weight isn't as simple as “calories in, calories out,” some demonize medications as an easy way out. “You feel like you would somehow be more virtuous if you lost weight the old-fashioned way, through willpower, diet, exercise and self-control,” Manne said.
Winfrey told People that the decision to take the medication was difficult for her, but she finally made the decision. “I am absolutely tired of being shamed by others and especially myself,” she said.
Dani Blum She is a Well reporter. More from Dani Blum
Callie Holterman writes about style and pop culture for the Times. More from Callie Holtermann