David, Yolanda Foster Divorce: Ex-Husband Backs Wife Accused of Faking Lyme Disease, Confirms Yolanda Is Battling Chronic Illness

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David Foster has finally spoken up about his ex-wife, Yolanda. After the official announcement of their divorce in early December, the hitmaker remained quiet about the end of his marriage. However, pressed by rumors surrounding Yolanda's chronic illness, the songwriter decided to release a statement Tuesday.

Yolanda is being accused by her "Real Housewives of Orange County" co-stars as exaggerating her claims about dealing with Lyme disease, even as every treatment she has gone through has been well-documented in the TV series. "Some of the cast members, they were questioning exactly what she was doing and exactly how sick she was," said reality TV star Kyle Richards, per Daily Mail.

What triggered David to come out and speak up was due to a report published by Us Weekly, which stated that he himself doubted his ex-wife's condition. "David and his family think Yolanda just loves the attention of being sick," a source supposedly revealed to the news outlet. "They believe she's exaggerating her condition. And they point out that she's never gotten a legit diagnosis or a second or third opinion."

In debunking the insider's claims, David said: "I have always had and continue to have the utmost respect and love for Yolanda, which is why it is so frustrating to see headlines questioning her chronic debilitating illness," the statement read in part, which Us Weekly also published separately. "I have been by Yolanda's side over the past four years to the best of my ability as she battled with the complexities of her Lyme diagnosis."

Last week, Yolanda wrote lengthily about her condition and struggles, including dealing with people who don't believe she's in pain. "Maybe it should anger me, but instead it makes me want to fight harder and speak louder for those whose voices can't be heard. Those of you who have experienced chronic illness, you know what I'm talking about," the reality TV star posted on her blog. The mother-of-three also said she's hopeful her health will improve. Her children, Gigi, 20, Bella, 19 and Anwar, 16 are all supportive of her too.

About 300,000 people are estimated to be dealing with Lyme disease in the U.S. yearly and the number is higher than breast cancer or HIV diagnosis, according to Lyme Disease Org. The condition starts as bacterial infection that could potentially lead to "fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, and various psychiatric illnesses, including depression," per the organization.

Yolanda's condition was diagnosed in 2012 and she was already 60 percent into recovery until she relapsed in December last year, per People.