Oprah Winfrey, 69, opened up about her prior weight struggles during a recent panel discussion for Oprah Daily’s “The Life You Want Class: The State of Weight.” Not only did the talk show host talk about weight loss drugs like Ozempic, but she also addressed the “stigma” she experienced shopping for clothing when she was at her “highest” weight. “This is a world that has shamed people for being overweight forever,” she explained. “And all of us who’ve lived it know that people treat you differently, they just do.”
The What I Know For Sure author went on to add that salespeople preferred to show her alternative items in stores due to her weight. “It’s that thing where people are like, ‘Let me show you the gloves. Would you like to look at the handbags? Because we know that there’s nothing in here for you,'” Oprah added. “There is a condescension. There is stigma.”
Earlier in the panel, the 69-year-old opened up about the “highest” weight she has been. “You all know I’ve been on this journey for most of my life. My highest weight was 237 lbs,” she said. “I don’t know if there is another public person whose weight struggle has been exploited as much as mine over the years.”
The billionaire also noted that the public has watched her continuously diet throughout her career. “You all have watched me diet and diet and diet,” she said, before adding that her diets are “a recurring thing because my body always seems to want to go back to a certain weight.” Elsewhere during the discussion, which took place at the end of September, Oprah touched upon the latest weight loss drugs going viral in Hollywood.
“Shouldn’t we all just be more accepting of whatever body you choose to be in? That should be your choice,” the brunette beauty said. “Even when I first started hearing about the weight loss drugs, at the same time I was going through knee surgery, and I felt, ‘I’ve got to do this on my own,’” she continued. “Because if I take the drug, that’s the easy way out.”
Oprah’s recent comments on weight come amid Cindy Crawford‘s claims that Oprah once made her feel like “chattel” during a prior appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. “In the moment, I didn’t recognize it. Only when I look back at it and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh. That was so not okay, really.’ Especially from Oprah,” the 57-year-old said in the Apple TV+ docuseries The Super Models. TV host Gayle King has since reacted to the comment and defended Oprah. Gayle noted that she was “surprised and a little disappointed,” to hear of Cindy’s experience.