Megyn Kelly reacts to fat-shaming controversy: 'I absolutely do not support' it

One day after garnering criticism for saying that "some" women "want" to be fat-shamed, Megyn Kelly responded to the controversy at the beginning of "Megyn Kelly Today" on Friday.

The backlash was in response to a comment she made while interviewing blogger Maria Kang on Thursday's episode of her morning show, during which she proclaimed that "some of us want to be shamed."

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"You should parlay the shaming thing into a professional business, because some of us want to be shamed!" Kelly interjected. "When I was in law school, I was gaining weight, I said to my stepfather, 'If you see me going into that kitchen one more time, you say, 'Where you going, fat ass?'' And it works!"

On Friday, Kelly made amends for her words, stating that she "would never encourage [body-shaming] toward any person" while revealing that she's personally struggled with her weight, noting that her "entire family is or has been overweight, or obese."

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"I said something yesterday on the show that clearly struck a nerve, and I think it's a conversation we need to have openly," Kelly said. "We were discussing body shaming others, something I absolutely do not support. In fact, quite the opposite."

"Before saying goodbye, I acknowledged that Maria’s ['what's your excuse?'] message does actually appeal to some people," Kelly went on. "She has thousands of followers who have created their own no excuses clubs throughout the country and then I revealed something even I used to do 25 years ago."

The former FOX News personality explained that her "entire family is or has been overweight," and she came to that realization when she "was about six years old" when a neighbor had told her that her mother was fat. Her mother confessed that she was, indeed, overweight.

"It was the first time I ever say my mother through that lens and it was my first lesson about the lens through which most of this country judges heavy people," Kelly explained. "A brutal and unforgiving one."

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And that was the beginning of her own personal struggle with body image.

"By the time I got to middle school, the hormones and the weight kicked in. I was chubby, by any standard and soon I found myself on the wrong side of some vicious bullies," Kelly revealed. "Ones who called me fat, and made fun of my backside, who subjected me to humiliating pranks. Those comments can cut deep, trust me, I know. Soon there were diet pills and obsessive exercise and I had reduced my calorie intake to 500 calories a day. My heart was racing all day, my hair and skin were dry but I was thin. And so unhappy. I was scared of gaining weight because of the insane standard this country holds its women to and because I was and remain afraid of dying in my 40’s, which happened to my father."

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In closing, Kelly essentially walked-back her comments from Thursday, reiterating that she doesn't actually encourage body-shaming or judging people for their weight, despite what she explicitly said just one day before.

"As an adult I’ve gotten healthier in my approach to eating, but I like every woman I know, still wrestle with body image, and still cringe when I hear a person attacked for his or her weight," she closed. "Please know, I would never encourage that toward any person. I’ve been thinking a lot about why I once encouraged it toward myself. What I know for sure is that weight is an issue for millions of people, thin and heavy alike. And neither deserves to be judged or shamed for how they choose to handle that struggle."

Watch the full moment at the top of the page.

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