You Are What You Eat of the Day: Speaking out on this morning’s Today Show about the reaction that followed the revelation that she suffers from type-2 diabetes, Butter Queen Paula Deen told Al Roker that “a few people were kind of mean about it and hold it against me.”
Deen announced on the Today Show in January that she was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes three years ago, but did not explain her reasoning for keeping the diagnosis to a secret.
Critics took issue with her proactive promotion of fatty, butter-rich foods — which continued despite her illness — and a shady endorsement deal she signed with diabetes drug maker Novo Nordisk shortly before her announcement.
Deen’s long-time publicist Nancy Assuncao quit immediately following the launch of her employer’s Novo Nordisk-sponsored “Diabetes in a New Light” campaign.
Responding to disapproval of her actions, Deen told the Today Show she has “always encouraged moderation,” and reiterated her previous comment to Oprah: “Honey, I’m your cook, not your doctor.”
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