Al Roker Says He’s 'Not Gonna Judge Anybody' Taking Weight Loss Drugs: 'It’s Unlike Any Other Addiction'

Al Roker is aware that everyone’s weight loss journey will look a little different.

In an interview published on November 9, the Today co-host, 70, spoke with Daily Mail promotes his new cookbook, Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By: Simple, Memorable Family Meals for Every Occasion.

​Roker — who had gastric bypass surgery in 2002 and has been vocal about his weight loss journey — opened up about the reality of food addiction and said there is no room to judge those who turn to modern weight loss drugs.

“I’m not going to judge anyone,” he told the newspaper. “Listen, it’s different than any other addiction or addiction. You can live without alcohol, you can live without cigarettes, whatever the drug is… but you have to eat, so some people just find it difficult.”

“If that’s what they’re comfortable with, I mean, who are we to say, ‘Oh, don’t do it.’ As long as it’s safe and effective, it’s good for you,” he added. “I think everyone’s journey is theirs.”

Al Roker urges critics not to shame people who take diet pills: ‘Stay within your line’

injectable drug for weight loss.

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Roker admitted that he is hesitant to give any advice to those on a weight loss journey or hoping to change their relationship with food because everyone has good days and bad days.

“It’s hard and everyone has to face it and they have to figure out their own way,” he explained. “And if that path is one of these drugs and it works for them, great. And if that helps you, if that’s what gets you to a point where you can be healthier and have a more active lifestyle, that’s great.”

Roker previously spoke about the topic in March when he discussed Oprah Winfrey’s television interview, titled The Oprah Special: Shame, Guilt, and the Weight Loss Revolutionwhich looked at how the use of weight loss drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro has grown in popularity.

“Everybody’s struggling with it, and we’re still trying to figure it out,” he said on air for Today show. “But there is no shame, no game. Just stay in your lane and don’t bother anyone.”

Al Roker tells critics to ‘give up’ on slamming Kelly Clarkson for using diet pills

Al Roker.

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In 2022, Roker marked the 20th anniversary of the bypass operation on social networks. “Hard to believe it was 20 years ago today, I wore these size 54 Levi jeans to #gastricbypass at 340 lbs. and here I am today,” he wrote in a video of himself holding up his old jeans.

“It’s still a struggle, but I’ll never go back,” he vowed. “I have setbacks and struggles every day, but I never forget how far I’ve come.”

In June of that year, Roker continued to talk about his weight loss journey, noting how his physical and mental health had improved since incorporating light exercise and a low-carb diet into his daily routine.

“Exercise, and not extreme exercise — we’re doing that 30-day walking challenge — that improves, I think, your mental health,” he said at the time. “Combined with a low-carb diet, I’ve lost about 45 pounds in the last few months. I eat about 100 grams of carbs a day and walk.”

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