LOS ANGELES, April 15 (UPI) -- Dick Clark has confirmed that he has Type 2 diabetes, a fact "America's oldest teenager" has kept secret for the past decade.
Clark, who only told close friends and family when he was diagnosed in 1994, had decided to take the news public next week, E!Online reported Thursday, but a New York Post gossip columnist leaked the information early.
Now that Clark has gone public with his medical condition, the former "American Bandstand" host will use his celebrity to benefit diabetes.
Clark has been tapped as spokesman for the American Association of Diabetes Educators and the pharmaceutical company Merck & Co.
His first duty will be to help launch a national public education campaign titled "Diabetes: Know the Heart Part," to inform Americans about the links between diabetes and heart attack and stroke.
