Oprah Winfrey Apologizes for Perpetuating Diet Culture
Oprah Apologizes for Perpetuating Diet Culture ... Set Unrealistic Standards!!!
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Oprah Winfrey is acknowledging the role she played in toxic diet culture -- and she's now trying to rectify that ... by embracing weight loss drugs.
The talk show legend opened up about her influence in the weight loss industry during a 3-hour live special for WeightWatchers this week -- and she owned the fact that she'd been feeding into this unhealthy trend for quite literally years.
Oprah says ... "I want to acknowledge that I have been a steadfast participant in this diet culture. Through my platforms, through the magazine, through the talk show for 25 years and online. I’ve been a major contributor to it."
She admitted this fixation on weight set an unrealistic standard for her audience over the course of decades ... which she nor anyone else could uphold.
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OW was joined by Rebel Wilson and Amber Riley, as well as WeightWatchers CEO Sima Sistani, to discuss WW's shift away from diet culture. Instead, the company is now touting self-love and promoting medical intervention through drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.
Oprah herself has admitted to using weight-loss medication to aid in her 40-pound transformation. She even stepped down from the WW board earlier this year ... to avoid a conflict of interest as the company made its way into the weight-loss med game.
Bottom line ... there shouldn't be any shame in needing medical help for weight loss, and Oprah's now promoting weight loss in a very different way.
We covered it all on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.