Oprah Winfrey this week revealed the stunning revelation she had when she started taking Ozempic: she stopped thinking about food all the time.
She realized this ‘food noise’ – the term for the constant, intrusive thoughts about eating – was what drove her to overeat and only feel satisfied after she was full.
In a recent episode of ‘The Oprah Podcast,’ she said: ‘One of the things that I realized the very first time I took a GLP-1 was that all these years I thought that thin people just had more willpower, they ate better foods, they were able to stick to it longer, they never had a potato chip, and then I realized the very first time I took the GLP-1 that, ‘Oh, they’re not even thinking about it. They’re only eating when they’re hungry, and they’re stopping when they’re full.’
Commenting on her weight became a public sport, she said, causing her to feel shame about her appearance and to internalize that shame.
Her 42-pound shrinkage captured the public’s attention when she walked the red carpet at December 2023’s premiere of The Color Purple.
A longtime spokesperson for Weight Watchers, people were skeptical immediately that the star shed those pounds by tracking points alone.
She confirmed to People magazine that same month that she had begun taking a pharmaceutical to aid in her weight loss and quiet the ‘food noise’.
Her 42-pound shrinkage captured the public’s attention when she walked the red carpet at December 2023’s premiere of The Color Purple
The talk show veteran said she has finally come to terms with the fact that she had spent much of her life painting her failure to keep weight off as a personal flaw rather than the medical issue that it is
She 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.
‘I’m absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself.’
When she began taking the medication, she had what she called an ‘aha moment’ – she had been blaming herself for her weight all these years when in reality, she had a genetic predisposition that willpower alone couldn’t control.
The type of drug Ms Winfrey has been taking spurs weight loss by mimicking the actions of GLP-1, or glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone in the brain that regulates appetite and feelings of fullness.
Many have speculated she is taking Ozempic, a medication approved to treat diabetes, but was found to cause an average of five percent lost body weight.\
Ms Winfrey was also diagnosed with prediabetes, a reversible warning that full-blown diabetes could be coming.
Anxiety about her size ‘occupied five decades of space in my brain, yo-yo-ing and feeling like why can’t I just conquer this thing, believing willpower was my failing.’
In November 1988, Oprah Winfrey captured national attention with an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, where she dramatically rolled out a wagon carrying 67 pounds of fat—representing the weight she had lost on the all-liquid Optifast all-liquid diet.
While the moment was meant to inspire millions, it also marked the start of a challenging journey for Winfrey.
She later said that she essentially ‘starved’ herself for five months before gaining it all back.
By 1992, her weight had reached 237lbs, the highest it had ever been.
She said in 2009: ‘I made it a goal to lose weight, and I appeared on the January 2005 cover at a toned 160 pounds.
‘I thought I was finished with the weight battle. I was done. I’d conquered it. I was so sure, I was even cocky. I had the nerve to say to friends who were struggling, “All you have to do is work out harder and eat less! Get your 10,000 steps in! None of that starchy stuff!”’
By 1992, Ms Winfrey’s weight had reached 237lbs, the highest it had ever been. Her goal weight now is around 160 pounds, though she told People it’s ‘not about the number’ but about living ‘a more vital and vibrant life’
By 2009, she had gained 40lbs: ‘I’m mad at myself. I’m embarrassed. I can’t believe that after all these years, all the things I know how to do, I’m still talking about my weight. I look at my thinner self and think, “How did I let this happen again?”’
After numerous doctor visits around that time to address a range of problems – she went days without sleep.
Her legs swelled, and her weight slowly increased—first by five pounds, then ten. She felt constantly sluggish, irritable, and out of sync.
Every time she exercised, her heart would race uncontrollably.
She finally received a diagnosis: hyperthyroidism, a condition that speeds up metabolism and often causes weight loss—though in her case, it didn’t.
Over time, it transitioned into hypothyroidism, slowing her metabolism and bringing fatigue and weight gain.
Ms Winfrey has often described food as her comfort and coping mechanism, comparing her relationship with it to addiction.
She has admitted to using food to soothe stress, sadness, and frustration.
She said in 2009: ‘My drug of choice is food. I use food for the same reasons an addict uses drugs—to comfort, to soothe, to ease stress.’
She has admitted to trying numerous diets, often experiencing dramatic weight loss followed by rebound weight gain.
In 2015, she became a part-owner and spokesperson for Weight Watchers, which she credits to helping her make ‘peace with food.’
She decided to give medication a try in a July 2023 taped panel conversation with weight loss experts, and clinicians called The State of Weight and part of Oprah Daily’s Life You Want series.
She said at the time: ‘Obesity is a disease. It’s not about willpower — it’s about the brain.’
She began exercising regularly after undergoing knee surgery in 2021.
After undergoing knee surgery, she began hiking and gradually set new distance goals each week. Over time, she could hike three to five miles daily and complete a 10-mile uphill hike on weekends.
‘I felt stronger, more fit, and more alive than I’d felt in years.’
She added: ‘I eat my last meal at 4 o’clock, drink a gallon of water a day, and use the WeightWatchers principles of counting points. I had an awareness of [weight-loss] medications but felt I had to prove I had the willpower to do it. I now no longer feel that way.’
Her goal weight now is around 160 pounds, though she told People it’s ‘not about the number’ but about living ‘a more vital and vibrant life.’
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
