'My Big Fat Fabulous Life' Star 'Babs' Dead At 76

Geri Green
Barbara Thore
Getty | Alberto E. Rodriguez

Barbara "Babs" Thore has died at the age of 76 and fans are mourning the loss. The My Big Fat Fabulous Life star, who was best known as Whitney Thore's mother on the TLC reality series, passed from cerebral amyloid angiopathy, per an Instagram post shared by Whitney last Thursday. In a touching tribute, Whitney shared a video collage of old photos that included her mother, announcing her passing and gathering a mass of love and support in the comments section. Barbara had suffered three strokes since 2017 - her last one was back on November 13.

Sharing Her Passing

Barbara Thore
Flickr | Discovery Inc

Addressing fans, Whitney opened:

"Rest In Peace, Sweet Mommy. June 22, 1946—December 7, 2022My mother died last night just as the credits rolled on her favorite movie. Dad, Hunter, and I held her as she took her last breaths. It was 10:32pm, the same exact time she brought me into this world almost forty years ago."

Explaining The Condition

Continuing as she offered a little more detail surrounding her late mother's ill health, Whitney continued: "My mom had cerebral amyloid angiopathy, which is an untreatable progressive condition caused by proteins in the blood vessels of the brain that can cause dementia, seizures, or like in my mom’s case, brain bleeding (hemorrhagic strokes). When mom had her first stroke in 2017, we were told of this and we knew that more strokes would eventually be inevitable."

The American reality series have proven a fan favorite since it began airing back in 2015. It chronicles the real-life story of Whitney Way Thore, a woman who once weighed 380 pounds.

Couldn't Love Someone 'More'

Sending Babs love, Whitney stated: "My mother is our family’s greatest gift. We could never love, revere, or value another person more."

She also took a moment to thank fans for all the viewing time in recent years. She said that the show offered her mother a "sense of purpose" and also "excitement," plus a little something to brighten her days, every time the camera crew would turn up at the door.

Fan Support

The post currently sits at over 200,000 likes, with the comments section now flooded by a mass backbone of support. "I am so sorry, Whitney 💕 what a beautiful, sweet, ball of light she was. Sending you all so much love," one comment reads. Many users said that they'll never forget Babs, also extending warmth to Whitney during her difficult time of mourning.