Valerie Bertinelli claims she was "fired" as a spokesperson for a diet company because she gained weight.

The 65-year-old actress shed 50 pounds after she became the face of the unnamed firm in 2007, but the brand cut ties with Valerie a few years later because she piled on the weight due to challenges in her life.

Appearing on a recent episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, Valerie reflected on an image of herself wearing a white dress to her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony in 2012, and said she "felt so horrified".

Valerie explained: "I had started a diet program and then became their spokesperson in 2007, and I had lost 50 pounds. And then life started to get the better of me, and I wasn't taking care of my mental and emotional health, so the weight started to come back on."

Looking at the photo of herself, the Hot in Cleveland star continued: "And this was the last year, I believe, that I was with this diet company. And they fired me, eventually said, 'We can't keep going with you because you're gaining weight again.'"

Valerie noted that the white dress she donned in the image was a size 12.

She added: "I remember thinking, 'But size 12's not that big!' But I had gotten down to a size 4 - which was way too small for me and impossible for me to maintain."

The One Day at a Time alum admitted that her weight has always been "up and down", but said that she has been a size 10 "pretty much my whole life".

Valerie added: "And I would've been horrified then, being on the diet program, being a size 10. But right now, it's about my mental and emotional health."

The former Food Network star got emotional as she shared she is in a much stronger place these days with her mental and emotional health.

Valerie continued: "I'm so strong and firm in who I am and, no matter what people throw at me, I know who I am, and I know what kind of person I am and it doesn't matter how much I weigh."

"What matters is who I am, how I treat people. Period!"

The Touched by an Angel actress revealed that she still has the white dress and can fit into it "just fine".

However, Valerie admitted: "It's a little less snug than it is there, but I just. If anything, it doesn't matter what size we are. What is our heart? How do we treat people? Period!"

Host Drew, 50, noted that conversations have evolved from labelling bodies as "skinny and fat" to focusing more on what health looks like for individuals.

Valerie agreed: "You're right! What is healthy for you? What is healthy mentally, spiritually, emotionally, physically?"