Rumors about Rachael Ray’s health have been a running rapid for decades, and now, fans say they’re more concerned than ever.
Her raspy voice sparked rumors that the former Food Network chef had throat cancer in 2006, but she had surgery for a benign cyst on her vocal cords. In recent years, fans also raised concerns about her slurred speech on camera.
But Ray sparked more uneasiness after being spotted in New York City with a swollen face.
On Wednesday, Oct. 15, the former talk show host was in route to prepare for a taping with “The Drew Barrymore Show” when paparazzi snapped a photo of her. She was slated to share a new recipe with Drew Barrymore on the show.
The photos suggest that she was caught mid-stroll while walking into the CBS studio. The 57-year-old was wearing a brown leather jacket, a brown shirt underneath, darker brown pants and gold boots. In one image, she was seen giving the photographers a slight smile.
But one image in particular reignited the worry over Ray’s health after people zoomed in on her swollen lower jaw and chin area. Others noticed her face looked puffier and more rounded than usual.
“Oh My,” said one Daily Mail reader after zooming in on her pics, while another concerned individual wrote, “God bless her. She looks seriously impaired. Wonder what happened?!”
A third person wrote, “Her face looks so bloated compared to the rest of her body. Hope she gets well.”
Some of Ray’s fans attempted to defend her bizarre look, saying, “I think Rachael Ray ate a little bit too much of her food. Don’t you think so and she looks busted.”
A fourth person typed, “She used to be cute. Are you sure that’s her?”
Fans had begun to question if Ray was ever inebriated on “The Rachael Ray Show” in past years, with many pointing to her speech and appearance during a heartfelt story about Tony Bennett.
Last year, on her cooking show “Rachael Ray in Tuscany,” she recalled how the 19-time Grammy-winning singer accidentally fell on her marble floor and hit his head at her home. He was fine, but fans were convinced that Ray wasn’t.
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Some people suspect she may have had a stroke, linking it to her falls last year. In her debut episode of her podcast “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead,” Ray opened up about her love for doing housework and why she had to cut back.
In Oct. 2024, she said, “I’m a homemaker. I love chores. I love being in the kitchen. I always work with my brain everyday, I’m always writing something, but I really like chores.”
“I’ve had a couple of bad falls in the last couple of weeks,” Ray added, “so I haven’t been doing that in awhile, but I love carrying wood.”
Overall, Ray has dodged the public’s questions about her health by simply not giving them any answers. Her rep told TMZ “no comment” when they asked about her health concerns after her Tony Bennett video went viral online.
But she is still working as Ray is expected to appear on Friday, Oct. 17, at the NYC Wine and Food Festival, where she will co-host the Blue Moon Burger Bash 2.0.
