Inside Tulisa's heartbreaking condition which may exempt her from I'm A Celeb trials

Inside Tulisa's health battle with Bell's palsy
-Credit: (Image: Rich Lowe/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)


Tulisa Contostavlos is among the celebrities swapping a life of luxury for the Australian jungle in this year's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! The 36-year-old is best known as the lead singer of N-Dubz and a former X Factor judge.

But her health battle with Bell's palsy could prevent her from taking part in some of the challenges on the show this year.

Tulisa quickly became a fan favourite during her time on The X Factor, as she led girl group Little Mix to victory in the 2011 series. So it seems like she wont struggle this year on I'm A Celeb to grasp the hearts of the public.

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In the season's first episode, the singer effortlessly tackled everything Ant and Dec threw her way, earning the title of the first camp leader alongside Coronation Street’s Alan Halsall after triumphing in a series of challenges against the other campmate pairs.

Tulisa Contostavlos and Alan Halsall on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!
Tulisa and Alan dominated the challenge for camp leaders on Sunday nights episode -Credit:Rich Lowe/ITV/REX/Shutterstock

Fans are now concerned the N-Dubz singer could now be hindered by her health condition.

The singer was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy back in 2020, which the NHS describes as a "temporary weakness or lack of movement that usually affects one side of the face."

Symptoms of the condition include an inability to move one side of the face, which typically develops over a few days, as well as a drooping eyelid or mouth corner, drooling, dry mouth, loss of taste, and either a dry or watering eye.

During a guest appearance on Loose Women in 2020, Tulisa opened up about her diagnosis, saying: “I do suffer from Bell's palsy... it can cause facial paralysis, it can cause swelling. I think the first attack I had was after a serious horse-riding accident. I fractured my skull and it caused a lot of nerve damage.

"At any time, I have emergency steroids on me, and now luckily I know how to manage it, so the attacks don't last as long.”

She continued: “There have actually been times when people have criticised me for the way I look and my face, not knowing I'm actually going through a Bell's palsy attack."

Tulisa sharing her experience with Bell's palsy helps raise awareness about the condition, providing support to those who have gone through it by letting them know they’re not alone. It also educates others about what Bell's palsy is and highlights the seriousness of the illness.

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The 2016 queen of the jungle, Scarlett Moffatt also suffers from Bell's palsy after she was diagnosed with the condition when she was just 12-years-old.

The former Gogglebox star was ruled out from taking part in a trial named Great Ascent, a challenge which saw Joel Dommett climb 100 foot in the air to collect 10 stars.

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