Ant McPartlin's heartbreaking health condition that went undiagnosed for years

Ant McPartlin has opened up about the health condition he has suffered from his whole life but was not officially diagnosed with until his forties.

The Saturday Night Takeaway star was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at the age of 43 as he admitted that he "never knew" he had the condition.

The Geordie host was diagnosed with the condition which can causes symptoms such as risk taking, being unable to focus and being impatient, after he took a break from work between 2018 and 2019.

According to The Express, Ant discovered he had the condition after he was arrested for drink driving in 2018 when he crashed into two vehicles.

At the time, an intoxicated Ant had whizzed round a corner with more than double the legal drinking limit in his system with one of the victims later saying in court: "We believed we could have died."

He was subsequently fined £86,000, had to cancel two television roles and faced a fall out with his colleague, Declan Donnelly.

After being diagnosed with ADHD while in rehab, the I'm a Celeb presenter said it "made sense" as there are a "lot of links" between the mental health condition and alcohol dependency.

The now 48-year-old went public with his diagnosis during an interview with The Sun back in 2019.

He told the publication: "I’ve got ADHD. I don’t mind talking about that. I was so thoroughly examined and diagnosed, I found stuff out about me I hadn’t addressed for years."

During the candid interview, Ant sent his thoughts to other people who may be "struggling" with ADHD and admitted in terms of his career, it was "brilliant" but in regards to his personal life, it causes some problems.

He explained: "In my job, having what they call ‘popcorn thinking’ is good because it means you can jump from one thing to another. Professionally it’s brilliant. Personally I’m all over the place."

According to a study published in BMC Psychiatry, in the UK around 24 per cent of male adults in prison have a history of ADHD or ADHD symptoms.

Furthermore, according to the organisation CHADD, ADHD can cause a range of difficult interpersonal issues.

It explains: “Individuals with ADHD often experience social difficulties, social rejection, and interpersonal relationship problems as a result of their inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity.

“Such negative interpersonal outcomes cause emotional pain and suffering.”

Ant is not the only celebrity to go public with their ADHD diagnosis in recent years as I'm A Celeb winner Sam Thompson, Lily Allen, Sheridan Smith and Katie Price have all also opened up about struggling with the condition.

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