Known for both her on-screen and off-screen lively attitude, it’s quite hard to believe that British actress Jameela Jamil actually suffers from a serious illness that most people don’t know about.
However, the 33-year-old ‘The Good Place‘ star has confirmed it herself.
Casually Confirmed
Back in February, Jamil shared a video of her pulling at the skin of her cheeks on Instagram.
In the clip, it can be seen that the actress’ skin is unusually stretchy. At first, she didn’t specify what her condition was even captioning her post with two simple words: ‘I’m fine’. It was only when a person in the comment section of the post asked her that she finally confirmed that she had Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS).
Although it was the first time that she admitted to having the illness, Jamil has previously talked about her symptoms. One notable incident is when a netizen on Twitter pointed out how her elbow was hyperextending. Taking things in stride, Jamil simply replied with a joking comment.
Aside from EDS, the actress also reportedly suffers from other chronic conditions like asthma, food allergies and celiac disease. She is also a patron of the Hypermobility Syndromes Association.
What EDS Really Is
According to Dr. Calvin J. Brown from the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, EDS is actually a group of disorders as opposed to being just one single condition. In fact, there are even 13 subtypes of the disease with each being considered to be its own distinct disorder.
EDS is believed to be caused by mutations within a person’s body which ultimately affects its production of collagen.
The aforementioned substance is a kind of protein that is necessary for the strength and structure of the body’s connective tissues. However, experts still don’t fully understand what causes the genetic issues in the first place.
Because it affects collagen production, the disease manifests as overly flexible joints as well as stretchy and fragile skin on the sufferer. These symptoms are usually observed from a young age but their severity may vary from individual to individual.
No Cure Yet
While a cure for the disease hasn’t been discovered yet, there are a variety of treatment choices for the management of EDS symptoms.
According to Mayo Clinic, people living with the condition are usually prescribed medication to address the pain and blood pressure problems that are typically associated with the disease.
The improvement of muscle tone and strength is also said to be helpful in the protection of the body’s joints. This can be done through various forms of physical activities from Pilates to yoga to physical therapy.
