Actress Valerie Bertinelli Responds to Crude Body-Shamer Who Called Her 'Chubby'
Actress and award-winning Food Network host Valerie Bertinelli stood up for herself when a rude stranger on the internet called her “chubby.”
Bertinelli, 59, has won two Daytime Emmy Awards for her weekly series “Valerie’s Home Cooking” on the Food Network.
She has hosted the popular “Kids Baking Championship” on the Food Network since 2015 and has succeeded in a slew of film and television roles throughout her career.
Many know Bertinelli from her work on the sitcom “One Day at a Time,” which ran from 1975 to 1984 and as Gloria on the television drama “Touched by an Angel” from 2001 to 2003.
More recently, Bertinelli portrayed Melanie Moretti on TV Land’s “Hot in Cleveland” from 2010 to 2015.
Bertinelli knows that with fame comes a hefty dose of criticism, often from total strangers who love to dish out mean comments online.
In the comments on a Feb. 17 tweet from the Food Network Kitchen, which was promoting an upcoming live cooking demonstration featuring Bertinelli, someone took the opportunity to throw a nasty online punch.
“Awwww, so chubby,” the critic wrote.
Bertinelli, kind enough to disguise the commenter’s name, decided to stand up for herself by taking the high road.
“Wow. Someone is always there to remind me to tidy up my negative thoughts some more,” she tweeted. “Thank you for reminding me I’m so much more than my body. Have a blessed day.”
Wow. Someone is always there to remind me to tidy up my negative thoughts some more. Thank you for reminding me I’m so much more than my body. Have a blessed day. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/453f6P3MFG
— Valerie Bertinelli (@Wolfiesmom) February 18, 2020
Bertinelli has been open about her struggle with weight gain, sharing how food, for her, has been used as a coping mechanism.
In an essay that Bertinelli wrote for Today, she spoke about those struggles and her commitment to health as she approaches age 60 in the spring.
“My year of choosing happy,” she titled the essay. “The truth is, I used food to avoid sadness. It’s time to make a change.”
Bertinelli explained how difficulties in her life, specifically the recent death of both of her parents, led her to use food as a source of comfort.
Feeling melancholy.
Today would’ve been my mom’s 83rd birthday.
Happy Birthday Mom.
Here’s a pic of her sweet Beau. He lives with me now ? pic.twitter.com/adr3lFBusu— Valerie Bertinelli (@Wolfiesmom) February 20, 2020
“With the loss of my parents and dealing with other trials life throws our way, I’ve used food as a way not to feel the sadness or the stress,” she wrote.
“But by eating something away, all it does is make me feel worse about myself. One of my personal mottos is ‘choose happy.’ But sometimes that choice is really challenging.”
Bertinelli is realistic about her wellness journey — that things will not play out perfectly, but she is committed to always moving forward.
“I’m not going to let any mistakes that I make in 2020 define me as a failure – and neither should you,” she wrote.
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