Rachael Ray‘s fans are worried about her after she shared a video on Instagram where she looked “sick” and appeared to be slurring her words.
On Sunday, the TV personality and chef posted a cooking video paying homage to her mom for Mother’s Day. Ray explained that when she first moved to New York City as a young adult, she didn’t have a lot of money for food. Fortunately, her mom was able to help her get creative with what she did have. “She showed me how to make something outta nothing—and how to do it with love,” Ray penned in her caption.
She continued to note that she started a show called “$40 a Day,” where she whipped up budget-friendly meals from simple ingredients, like beans and vegetables.
However, many viewers seemed less interested in her sentimental story and more so in how she looked and spoke.
Many commenters expressed concern over Ray’s appearance.
“Rachael. Are you okay? You don’t look well,” wrote one fan.
“Omg I didn’t even know who that was. Yikes what happened to Rachael,” read another. In fact, numerous other commenters echoed that they had a difficult time recognizing her.
“She’s slurring her words,” a third person pointed out.
While some argued that Ray, 56, only looked different because she had gotten older, others were adamant that she was battling something. “Stop saying this is aging. She’s clearly sick. This is not aging.”
In September, Ray posted another cooking video in which fans had similar concerns over the way she spoke and looked. Specifically, fans speculated that her mouth looked like she was recovering from a stroke or had Bell’s Palsy. However, Ray never publicly addressed any of these concerns.
The only time details regarding Ray’s health surfaced in 2008 when rumors swirled that she was having surgery for throat cancer. Her rep, Charlie Dougiello, quickly set the record straight, telling People: “Rachael is the picture of health. She is having very minor surgery to remove a benign cyst on her vocal cord.”
She had the procedure the following year. The topic of her vocal cords hasn’t been publicly discussed since.