The Bachelor star Joey Graziadei has revealed a syndrome he was diagnosed with and how he plans to take better care of his health going forward.
ADVERTISEMENT
Since The Bachelor's 28th season began airing in January on ABC, viewers have been noticing how the whites of Joey's eyes look a little yellow.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Joey's "yellow eyes" have sparked a lot of discussion and concern on social media, and so now Joey has addressed all the speculation directly.
The Bachelor star took to Instagram and TikTok on Friday, March 1 and shared a video explanation.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I wanted to jump on here really quick and talk about something that I am seeing a lot of comments about, which is 'Joey's yellow eyes,'" the tennis pro began.
"So to give some context on that, I have to go all the way back to when I was in high school. I was sick for about a week-and-a-half and my mom thought it would be a good idea for me to go to the doctor."
Joey said when he got checked out by a medical professional, he had bloodwork done.
"And the bloodwork showed that my bilirubin count was very high," Joey revealed.
"That means that there could be something that was wrong with my liver. So we went and I got a liver ultrasound. I went to other doctors and they found out that there was nothing necessarily wrong, like hepatitis, but they diagnosed me with something called Gilbert syndrome."
ADVERTISEMENT
Gilbert syndrome is a mild condition in which the liver does not process bilirubin properly due to abnormality of the responsible liver enzyme. The syndrome is common and can last several years or be a lifelong condition.
"At the end of the day, I am told that I am healthy, [but] it's something that does affect the whites of my eyes," Joey continued in his video.
"It makes it have those jaundice levels, which is why they look a little bit more yellow."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Joey shared that although this syndrome is not serious and he's doing well, he's going to make his health a priority in 2024 and he appreciates fans looking out for him.
ADVERTISEMENT
"It's something I want to pay more attention to this year. I want to get my health right and make sure that I'm all good," Joey shared.
"I at least wanted to give some background and let you know that to my knowledge, I am healthy. It's just something I have to pay attention to and drink more fluids."
Joey also explained how his symptoms worsen when he is "stressed" or battling "a lack of sleep."
"[That] happens on a TV show," Joey quipped. "I do appreciate everyone looking out for me and wondering if I'm okay. To my knowledge, I am as okay as I can be and I will continue to look at it, so thank you very much."
Joey has appeared physically and emotionally strong on The Bachelor so far.
ADVERTISEMENT
The only time Joey really struggled before hometown dates was when the cast was in Canada, where The Bachelor star was shown trying to overcome fears and insecurities.
At that stage in the game, Joey found himself holding his feelings back from the bachelorettes and falling for multiple women at once. He was afraid of going "all in" with his person, only to be left or rejected in the end.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Joey was also scared that he wasn't going to be accepted and loved for who he is, given expectations of him were very high.
"There are some women here that I'm scared to death would go home if I started to share how I'm feeling and they didn't feel the same way, or they had this realization, 'This isn't right,'" Joey admitted.
Joey recently explained on the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast how he was especially tired in Montreal after traveling to two different destinations in Europe, Malta and Spain.
"It was getting to that point where things were kind of piling on top of each other, and you feel drained emotionally and physically and all of that," Joey told Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt on their podcast.
He added, "Your insecurities come out when things start to get serious... I just felt the pressure and the weight of that week."
Joey noted that "for lack of a better explanation," he was simply having "an off day" in Montreal and it was "caught on-camera."
The Bachelor's next episode airing on Monday, February 4 at 8PM ET/PT will feature Joey visiting the hometowns of his Final 4 bachelorettes: Daisy, Kelsey A., Maria Georgas, and Rachel Nance.
It appears Joey will have to face some tough questions from family members as the bachelorettes will also have to face their feelings and confront of the possibility of getting hurt in the end.
ADVERTISEMENT
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Click here to learn more about Joey's The Bachelor bachelorettes or click here to read spoilers that reveal how Joey's season ends and who he picked as his winner.
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Follow our Bachelor Nation News Page on Facebook or join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!