Gayle King Shares Health Update from Oprah Winfrey After Stomach Virus: ‘I'm Not 100, I'm on My Way'
"I couldn't keep enough water down to get hydrated, so I went to the emergency room for that," Winfrey told her longtime friend King
Gayle King/Instagram
Gayle King gets health update from Oprah WinfreyGayle King is sharing an update about her longtime friend Oprah Winfrey's health.
After King, 69, revealed that Winfrey, 70, had been hospitalized with a stomach virus and dehydration during CBS Mornings on Tuesday, June 11, later that day King decided to FaceTime Winfrey to help set the record straight. King shared the news about Winfrey's health as she addressed her absence from a scheduled appearance on the morning show to reveal her latest book club pick — Familiaris by David Wroblewski.
In a clip shared on Instagram, King spoke virtually with the talk show host veteran and confirmed that she was not in the hospital.
"I never said you were hospitalized, I did say that you had a stomach something, was coming out of both sides, which it was," said King in the video.
"I was in the emergency room, I was so dehydrated," responded Winfrey. "I had a dry mouth and I couldn't keep enough water down to get hydrated, so I went to the emergency room for that, and that's just it."
Winfrey then shared that she's "not 100 [percent], I'm on my way to 100," adding that five people in her household had also fallen ill with the same virus.
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"The point I was trying to make America, is that it had to be something that would keep her from getting on a plane and coming. That's the only point I was trying to make," King added of Winfrey's absence, which the philanthropist noted was the "first ever" book club pick she'd missed.
"I was too weak to get on the plane," Winfrey added.
The Color Purple star urged people to wash their hands to try and prevent getting the illness, saying the doctor had told her it can be transmitted on things like door knobs and railings.
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King also asked Winfrey if she was "offended" by her sharing the news about her health, to which she replied, "No I thought what you were trying to do was explain why I wasn't there and doing that in a definitive way."
"Everybody I've ever known who has access to my email has called me to say, 'Are you alright?' Thanks!" she added with a laugh.
"This is Oprah's 'I'm alright' face," noted King.
"A first for @cbsmornings, announcing @oprah’s latest book club pick #Familiaris without Oprah! She was sidelined with a stomach virus that caused such dehydration that she went to the hospital to get an IV drip," King captioned the post
"I thought I made that clear but next thing I know I’m surprised to see headlines that scream 'Oprah’s hospitalized!' (She was NOT!) And I’m bombarded with calls asking if Oprah is okay. The answer is yes! And now let’s go straight to the source," the journalist added.
King's comments come after she said of Winfrey during the June 11 broadcast, "She had some kind of stomach thing — stomach flu — stuff was coming out of both ends."
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“I won't get too graphic. Needless to say, she ended up in the hospital, dehydration, had to get an IV," King said, calling it "a very serious thing" and that her friend needed to rest.
"She will be okay. I hope she's not mad at me for sharing that detail," King told viewers. "But I wanted to make it clear, though, that it mattered to her and that it really bothered her that she couldn't be here for you today."
A spokesperson for Winfrey told PEOPLE, “Ms. Winfrey is recovering following a stomach virus and received an IV due to dehydration at the recommendation of her doctor,” adding: “She is resting and feeling better every day.”
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