‘Bachelor’ Joey Graziade explains the yellow tone of his eyes caused by Gilbert syndrome

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — There has been some chatter about Joey Graziadei’s eyes appearing yellow on “The Bachelor” this season, and he’s now explained the cause.

In a video posted on his verified Instagram account, Graziadel revealed that he has Gilbert syndrome, which was first diagnosed when he was in high school after being sick for a week and a half. Blood tests showed he had a high bilirubin count, he said, which can indicate a problem with the liver.

“So we went and got a liver ultrasound,” he explained in the video. “I went to other doctors. They found out that there was nothing that was necessarily wrong, like hepatitis.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, Gilbert syndrome is “a common, harmless liver condition in which the liver doesn’t properly process bilirubin.”

“At the end of the day I am told that I am healthy. It is something that affects the whites of my eyes. It makes it have those jaundice levels, which is why they look a little bit more yellow,” Graziadei said. “It’s something I want to pay attention to more going into this year. I want to get my health right.”

Stress and lack of sleep, which can both be present when you are filming a television show, can make the yellowing of the whites of his eyes, or sclera, appear “worse,” Graziadei said.

The tennis pro is looking for love on this season of “The Bachelor” airing Monday nights on ABC. He first appeared as one of the contestants on Charity Lawson’s season of “The Bachelorette.”

The-CNN-Wire
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