Getty ImagesLea DeLaria is looking a lot thinner these days!
The Orange Is the New Black star recently revealed she lost 50 pounds after she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
"What you need to do is, first contract diabetes. Two, take the medication that they give you for diabetes," the 56-year-old funnylady joked to People of her weight loss. "I lost 50 pounds since September. I lost 25 pounds since the SAG Awards. It's crazy!"
DeLaria was diagnosed with the illness over one year ago. "I feel great. But I went through a year of going, 'Why do I feel so bad?'" she explained. "I've always been really energetic, but for a year I was feeling really weird, I didn't know what was going on. Once we did the blood test and we understood what was going on, it was great. And now I've got my energy back. I feel like me and everything is great."
Today, DeLaria is eating less and cutting out carbs like potatoes. "One: I have no appetite. Two: When I finally do get an appetite, I take two bites of it. Three: Anything I eat comes right out again because of the medication," DeLaria said. "My fiancée is like, 'You're living my dream!' It ain't my dream—I'd rather eat a steak, let's be honest."
Even though DeLaria looks skinnier on the outside, she insists the weight loss is to benefit her health, not her figure.
"When I lecture at universities I always say, 'Look, I got laid just as much as I did when I was 50 lbs. heavier than I am right now.' So, frankly, you're beautiful no matter what your size is," she said. "This obsession we have with thinness in our industry and in the world needs to [go away]."