Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager praise Kelly Clarkson for her “transparency” about her weight loss.
Clarkson, 42, recently told the “Kelly Clarkson Show” that she is taking medication as part of her weight loss program.
On TODAY with Hoda & Jenna on Tuesday, Hoda praised Clarkson for being “as transparent as possible” about her experience, but also noted that the singer is under no obligation to publicly reveal anything about her physical transformation.
“She can lose weight however she wants,” Hoda said. Jenna agreed that Clarkson’s weight loss is ultimately nobody’s business but Clarkson herself.
“I just find it so interesting that people feel like they deserve explanations,” Jenna said.
At the same time, Jenna said she completely understands why some public figures are open about their weight loss. “It’s a hard road for a lot of women to talk about their bodies and their weight, and I know there’s this big movement,” she said.
“I mean, Oprah did a whole special about what it means to have problems with this,” she added, referring to Oprah Winfrey’s recent television special about the growing popularity of weight-loss drugs.
Hoda also said she has noticed an overall change in Clarkson, who tapes her daytime talk show across the street from the TODAY studios in New York City.
“I don’t think she’s ever been happier or healthier,” Hoda said, “and we see that every day right across the street.”
On her talk show on May 13, Clarkson revealed that she had been taking medication as part of her weight loss program.
She did not disclose which medication she was taking, but clarified that it was not Ozempic.
Ozempic is a prescription drug used to treat type 2 diabetes. Weight loss is one of the most common side effects, so it is often used off-label as a weight loss agent.
Novo Nordisk, the company that makes Ozempic, previously told TODAY.com in a statement that it “does not promote, recommend or encourage the off-label use of our medicines.”
Clarkson said she was initially reluctant to take medication as part of her weight loss program, but changed her mind after her doctor “chased her for about two years.”
“At my heaviest, I was about 203 pounds and 5’3,” Clarkson said. “It’s funny because people assume, ‘Oh, she must have been unhappy, depressed or something,’ and I said, ‘No, I wasn’t.'”
This article was originally published on TODAY.com.
