Oprah Winfrey is gearing up for her new TV special on weight loss medications, set to air on Monday.
Oprah Winfrey has revealed her reason for leaving the board of Weight Watchers after nearly a decade.
During an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the media mogul shared the context behind her headline-making decision to resign, citing her upcoming TV special on weight loss medication.
"I decided that because this special was really important to me and I wanted to be able to talk about whatever I want 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 explained. "I did not want to have the appearance of any conflict of interest and so, I resigned from the board and I donated all of my shares to the National Museum of African American History… so nobody can say, 'Oh, she’s doing that special, she’s making money and promoting'… No, you cannot say that."
When asked whether the people at Weight Watched cried when she left, Winfrey replied, "They almost did."
The primetime television special -- named "Shame, Blame and the Weight Loss Revolution" and set to air March 18 on ABC and the next day on Hulu -- is set to focus on prescription weight loss medications and their impact on other elements of life, including healthcare, culture, and the economy, according to a press release. "Speaking in front of a live studio audience, Oprah gathers the country’s leading medical experts and everyday people who are in the battle of one of the biggest health care crises the world has ever known," the press release stated. "For the first time in history, new drugs could prove to be the game changer to stem the tide of people living with obesity, an epidemic which has grown exponentially since the 1970s, costing $173 billion per year in medical costs in the United States alone."
As Winfrey, 70, acknowledged on Kimmel, she has personally struggled with her weight for decades, often losing and gaining weight repeatedly. She also devoted episodes of The Oprah Winfrey Show on issues surrounding weight. Last year, she confirmed that she uses weight loss medication, telling People, "I now use it as I feel I need it, as a tool to manage not yo-yoing."
"It is a very personal topic for me and for the hundreds of millions of people impacted around the globe who have for years struggled with weight and obesity," Winfrey said in a recent statement. "This special will bring together medical experts, leaders in the space and people in the day-to-day struggle to talk about health equity and obesity with the intention to ultimately release the shame, judgment and stigma surrounding weight."
"An Oprah Special: Shame, Blame and the Weight Loss Revolution" airs Monday, March 18 on ABC at 8 p.m. ET.
RELATED CONTENT:
