Oprah Winfrey

Now, the very first time I heard this, I likened it into, because I know there are a whole lot of naysayers and a lot of people who want to believe that it isn't, even though the science is saying it is.

But, you know, I've been through this.

I've lived long enough and done conversations long enough

that I remember in the very early days of doing the Oprah show, like in 1986, 1987, the very first time we did a show on alcoholism, and doctors were saying alcoholism is a disease.

The audience, all the people, although we did not have social media at the time were like, oh no, just put down the bottle.

Why can't you just stop drinking?

People did not understand that there are some people who are genetically prone for it being a disease and that everybody who drinks is not an alcoholic, but there are many people who drink and because of what alcohol does to their bodies because of their genes is very different than people who just, so is it the same thing?

Lots of people are eating in the world.

Not everybody is carrying the propensity for obesity.

Okay, so is it a gene?

Is it a hormone?

Is it a something within my body that's not in Reese Witherspoon's body?

So... I love Reese and I go to Reese because the first time you told me this and you were saying, well, it's our environment, I say, I said, Reese Witherspoon lives in the same environment.

Yeah, yeah.

She actually lives in the same neighborhood.

Time for a quick break.

When we come back, Dr. Anya will explain why our bodies are actually physically designed to make it difficult to lose and to keep off weight.

Hi, we're back on the Oprah Podcast.

I'm with Dr. Anya talking about her groundbreaking new book, Enough, Your Health, Your Weight, and What It's Like to Be Free.

If there's someone you love who is struggling with being overweight or with obesity, I hope you share this episode with them.