Tom Hanks, who has been making the rounds on talk shows to promote his latest film, “Captain Phillips,” revealed to late-night host David Letterman that he was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
The Academy Award-winning actor said that although he’s been suffering for years with symptoms of the disease, which is a problem with the body’s ability to use insulin properly, he was only given the diagnosis recently. After Letterman made a remark about Hanks’ slimmer appearance, Hanks admitted his up-and-down weight for the past 20 years contributed to the course of the diabetes.
“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,'” said the 57-year-old on “Late Night with David Letterman.”
The doctors said Hanks could stay healthy if he maintains the weight that he was in high school. But having been a very thin 96 pounds back in his teen years, Hanks told them, “Well, I’m gonna have type 2 diabetes because there is no way I can weigh as much as I did in high school.”
According to the American Diabetes Association, type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. Some groups have a higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes than others — it is more common in African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, as well as the aged population.
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