Tom Hanks reveals he suffers from diabetes

Actor Tom Hanks has revealed that he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in an interview with David Letterman.

14:13 09 October 2013

Tom Hanks has revealed that he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes during an interview with chat show host David Letterman.

The double Oscar winner was appearing on Letterman’s show when the host commented that the 57-year-old actor was looking relatively trimmer. Hanks retorted: “I went to the doctors and they said, ‘You know those high blood sugar numbers you've been living with since you were 36, well you've graduated, you've got Type 2 Diabetes young man’.”

Through this, he also confirmed that he has been experiencing symptoms for 20 years before he was diagnosed with the condition.

Type 2 diabetes is the result of the body not producing enough insulin to function properly. Other Hollywood celebrities who have the same condition include Patti Labelle, Halle Berry, Chaka Khan, and Drew Carey.

Asked on how he was dealing with it, the Castaway actor said: “Well it's controllable through diet.”

'My doctor said, "If you can weigh what you weighed in high school, you'll essentially be completely healthy and not have type 2 diabetes."

The Oscar-winning star said: “Well I'm going to have type 2 diabetes then.”