Oprah weighs in at 200 lbs

December 9, 2:39 PMDenver Low Carb ExaminerLinda Duffy

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(AP Photo/Peter Kramer, file)

I was rather surprised to read the headlines that Oprah was up to 200 pounds. While she has struggled with her weight over the years, she also has access to personal trainers, personal chefs, and a constant stream of expert advice. 

As of today, I only weigh 7 more pounds than she does. I don't have a personal chef, I don't have a trainer, and the closest thing I have to a guru is my husband, who only talks about news and politics. I am also 6' tall, where Oprah is much shorter. She is a public figure, appears on national television and doesn't have the luxury of hiding when she is feeling embarrassed about her size. Her struggle with her weight is very public while I struggled in obscurity. 

You would think with all that help and expertise, she would have no trouble staying trim. The only problem is that her "experts" have one thing in common. They believe in the tired old low-fat, calorie restriction, more exercise dogma that lead me to weighing 280 lbs and develop a nice case of hypertension.

I understand Oprah's struggle, but until she realizes that perennial guests like Dr. Oz don't understand the difference between the dietary needs of a gorilla and a human, she will continue to swing back and forth between thin and hungry and fat and miserable. Too few calories, not enough natural fats (including saturated fat), inadequate protein levels and too many carbohydrates (whole grain or not) are always a formula for failure. 

Oprah, I feel your pain. It's not your fault you are fat. Really. It's the advice you are getting. I gave the dietary establishment from the age of 16 to 44 to make me healthy and thin. I listened to everything they said and followed it as best I could until I snapped. According to them, it was always my fault for not trying hard enough. For not being dedicated. For not cutting my calories low enough or my fat levels to nearly zero.

Guess what? They lied. Fat doesn't make you fat, carbs do. Cutting calories doesn't make you skinny, it depletes your body of vitamins and minerals while slowing your metabolism. It wasn't that I had a character flaw that made me fat, it was the things they told me to do were actually destroying my brain. Oprah, stop believing the lies and stop beating up yourself....and stop listening to the idiots who haven't helped you with long-term health. Get yourself a copy of "Good Calories, Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes, or "Protein Power" by Mike & Mary Eades, or "Natural Health and Weight Loss" by Barry Groves and get on the path to good health.