Bethenny Frankel reveals stage 2 chronic kidney disease diagnosis Mekishana PierreJanuary 23, 2026 at 9:11 PM 0 Hoda Davaine/Getty Bethenny Frankel in 2025 Bethenny Frankel has been diagnosed with stage 2 chronic kidney disease — and she's using her diagnosis to help her fans. "I have a medical announcement. Not because I want you to worry, but because I want you to take precautions in your own life, be mindful," the Real Housewives of New York City alum, 55, began in a video shared to her Instagram page Thursday.
- - Bethenny Frankel reveals stage 2 chronic kidney disease diagnosis
Mekishana PierreJanuary 23, 2026 at 9:11 PM
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Hoda Davaine/Getty
Bethenny Frankel in 2025
Bethenny Frankel has been diagnosed with stage 2 chronic kidney disease — and she's using her diagnosis to help her fans.
"I have a medical announcement. Not because I want you to worry, but because I want you to take precautions in your own life, be mindful," the Real Housewives of New York City alum, 55, began in a video shared to her Instagram page Thursday. "Months ago, I decided that I was going to be very proactive about blood tests, bone density — all the things I had heard people talking about — and I started to take a series of blood tests. And each time my kidney function was coming up low."
Frankel was referred to a specialist, with whom she reluctantly made an appointment that led to her diagnosis, although the doctor was unsure about what caused the kidney disease.
Bethanny Frankel/Instagram
Bethanny Frankel with her daughter Brynn
"He said to me, 'You have stage 2 chronic kidney disease.'" Frankel recalled. "He said it could be a function of this traumatic experience I had years ago when I almost died from an allergy attack. It could have done damage to the kidney. It could be autoimmune."
She said that her disease has likely caused infections — "I do get UTIs, not as much anymore" — and that the first line of treatment was to stay hydrated. The doctor even suggested it could be linked to a lack of water intake, to which the reality star admitted, "You guys know that I always have a hydration packet. I'm holding a bottle, but I'm not usually drinking it."
The specialist stressed to Frankel that she would have to increase her water intake, as well as cut out ibuprofen, Aleve or Advil, turmeric, and a few other things she couldn't recall — including ice cream, which she was eating on camera. "I remembered after," she said.
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According to the Mayo Clinic, stage 2 chronic kidney disease can result in "mild loss of kidney function," which cleans the blood by removing waste and extra fluid, leaving the body as urine. Kidneys also help control blood pressure and balance salt and minerals. A chronic kidney disease diagnosis usually occurs when the kidneys are damaged for more than a few months. Lowering blood pressure — along with regular monitoring — can keep the disease from progressing.
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Bethenny Frankel in 2025
Frankel asserted that she wasn't sharing her diagnosis for sympathy or to worry her followers, but wanted to use her experience to encourage her fans to "take precautions" in their own lives and "be mindful."
"Maybe I'll have to deal with this forever," Frankel said. "But I wanted to tell you because I think it's important to get all your bloodwork done. Be thorough. Then do the follow-ups for anything that seems like an outlier. And frankly, get your bloodwork done maybe six months and then six months later, because different stuff could come up and sometimes it's an aberration and sometimes it means something."
Frankel stressed that her situation was born of a pattern, adding that she hopes to get answers from the "part-time doctors" of TikTok. "I don't know exactly what it means. Many of you will, which is also why I'm sharing with you."
"Medical cautionary tale," she captioned her video post.
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As Frankel mentioned in her video, she's been candid about the medial issues she's contended with over the past few years.
In 2023, she opened up about having been diagnosed with long COVID and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), an autoimmune condition that causes varying symptoms when transitioning from lying down to standing up, such as fatigue, dizziness and a fast heart rate. And earlier this month, she contracted a bacterial infection while on vacation in St. Barts.
Watch Frankel's video message above.
on Entertainment Weekly
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Source: Entertainment
Published: January 23, 2026 at 11:46AM on Source: OPERA MAG
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