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Opinion
Can we cut Oprah Winfrey some slack? The struggle to lose weight is real — and drugs can be a lifesaver.
Winfrey has faced backlash since announcing she’s taken a weight-loss medication
Leave Oprah alone.
Yes, Oprah Winfrey is in the news again — in this case, for her decision to sell her stake in WW International WW, +8.33% (formerly known as WeightWatchers) and exit the company’s board. The decision came after Winfrey announced, to considerable backlash, that she was taking a weight-loss drug to help her in her longtime battle to lose some pounds and keep them off, in addition to hiking, drinking plenty of water and other methods.
The company’s stock fell in the aftermath of the news.
At issue was largely the fact that Winfrey had previously said using such a drug was “the easy way out.” And indeed, as the public face of a company that touted a more traditional diet-based approach to battling obesity, one could see why Winfrey might have made such a remark.
But now, she was being labeled a hypocrite on social media for saying otherwise. And surely some saw Winfrey’s announcement as opportunistic and self-serving given that it followed WW’s acquisition of Sequence, a company that provides access to such popular fat-fighting medications as Ozempic and Wegovy NVO, +3.72%.