On "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Thursday, Winfrey said she did not want "any conflict of interest" amid her new ABC special, "An Oprah Special: Shame, Blame and the Weight Loss Revolution," airing Monday night.
"I decided that because this special was really important to me and I wanted to be able to talk about whatever I wanted to talk about, and Weight Watchers is now in the business of being a weight health company that also administers drug medications for weight," she told Jimmy Kimmel, referencing Weight Watchers' March decision toadd weight loss drugs like Wegovy to its program.
When Kimmel asked if Weight Watchers staffers cried when she exited the board, Winfrey laughed: "They almost did."
Oprah Winfrey exits Weight Watchers, calls weight health 'critically important'
Winfrey's comments on "Live!" echo earlier statements she made in a Marchpress release shared via the company's corporate website, stating she wanted "to eliminate any perceived conflict of interest around her taking weight loss medications."
"I look forward to continuing to advise and collaborate with Weight Watchers and CEO Sima Sistani in elevating the conversation around recognizing obesity as a chronic condition, working to reduce stigma, and advocating for health equity," the media mogul said.
Winfrey also said weight health is a "a critically important topic and one that needs to be addressed at a broader scale" in the statement.
Previously, Winfrey addressed her personal journey with weight lossduring her "The State of Weight" panel conversation as part of Oprah Daily's "The Life You Want" series in September.
"This is a world that has shamed people for being overweight forever, and all of us who have lived it know that people treat you differently, they just do," Winfrey said. "And I'm Oprah Winfrey, and I know all that comes with that, but I get treated differently if I'm 200-plus pounds versus under 200 pounds.
"I don't know that there is another public person whose weight struggles have been exploited as much as mine,"Winfrey said.
“The fact that there's a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for,” she told People.
Oprah Winfrey has revealed why she left her nearly 10-year post as a WeightWatchers board member last month. Her resignation was motivated by her work on an upcoming TV special on the rise of prescription weight-loss drugs, she said during a Thursday appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
How did Oprah lose weight? Oprah's 2021 knee surgery actually jumpstarted her recent weight loss. "After [my] knee surgery, I started hiking and setting new distance goals each week. I could eventually hike three to five miles every day and a 10-mile straight-up hike on weekends," Oprah told PEOPLE.
Based on data reported in clinical studies, Qsymia is likely the most effective prescription weight-loss pill. It tends to lead to the largest amount of weight loss in the highest percentage of people.
MORE: Oprah Winfrey confirms she's on a weight-loss medication, says she's tired of 'shaming' Wegovy, a medication that contains the same main ingredient, semaglutide, as Ozempic, is FDA-approved for weight loss.
Last December, the former TV host revealed that she had been taking weight-loss medication, although she declined to name which one. At the time, she said that the prevalence of drugs like Ozempic “feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for.”
Weightwatchers offers a lifestyle guidance program for those already taking anti-obesity meds prescribed from their own doctor. WeightWatchers members may also be eligible to receive Ozempic and Rybelsus and other Type 2 diabetes drugs often prescribed off label to treat obesity.
Science magazine anointed them the “2023 Breakthrough of the Year.” Americans are most familiar with their brand names: Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, Zepbound. They are the medications that have revolutionized weight loss and raised the possibility of reversing the country's obesity crisis.
Winfrey owns about 1.1 million shares of WW International, representing a 1.43% stake in the company, according to data provider FactSet. At the current stock price, that's worth $2.5 million. Her initial investment for 6.4 million shares of the company totaled $43.2 million.
But the star has gotten some backlash after revealing during a recent episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show that she used a weight loss medication after her guest, Whoopi Goldberg, raved about taking the injectable weight loss drug Mounjaro.
In addition to taking a drug to manage blood sugar, which is likely aiding in weight loss, Clarkson says she's made some lifestyle tweaks. A move to New York from LA helped her move her body more, she told People in 2023. "Walking in the city is quite the workout," Clarkson said.
WeightWatchers embracing weight-loss drugs and closing more locations. After decades of emphasizing personal responsibility and behavior change, WeightWatchers is embracing clinical weight loss treatments and is cutting back on the in-person meetings that once defined the company.
According to WeightWatchers, Winfrey won't stand for reelection at the May 2024 shareholder meeting, and she will donate all her WeightWatchers stock to the National Museum of African American History and Culture during the company's open trading window next month.
Jean Evelyn Nidetch (October 12, 1923 – April 29, 2015) was an American businessperson and the founder of Weight Watchers. Brooklyn, New York, U.S. Parkland, Florida, U.S. She died on April 29, 2015, of natural causes at her home in Parkland, Florida, at the age of 91.
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