Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Alfie Deyes
Topics: YouTube, Social Media, Health
Brenna Cooper
Alfie Deyes has revealed he's been diagnosed with a rare swallowing disorder, after previously believing he'd been suffering from acid reflux.
The YouTuber, who is best known for being one half of the social media power couple alongside Zoe Sugg, has been candid on his channel about experiencing digestive discomfort online over the past decade.
For years the 32-year-old believed he was struggling with a pretty gnarly case of acid reflux, even going as far as to cut out foods such as bread, bananas and coffee in a bid to get relief from his symptoms.
However, the social media creator has revealed in a new video that his issues were actually caused by a rare swallowing disorder, which impacts less than 12 in 100,000 people.
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Sharing the health update on YouTube, Deyes told followers that he'd been diagnosed with a condition called oesophageal achalasia.
According to the NHS, oesophageal achalasia is a condition where the muscles of the food pipe struggle to contract properly, making it difficult for food to pass towards the stomach.
The main symptom of oesophageal achalasia is experiencing a difficulty in swallowing food or drink (dysphagia), however patients can also experience chest infections, choking or coughing fits and bringing back up undigested food.
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Acid reflux, the symptom which Deyes had struggled with for years, is also common amongst oesophageal achalasia patients.
"I've been trying to solve it as best I can and seeing different doctors to try and get to the bottom of it over the years and I just couldn't get it under control," Deyes said of his medical journey, revealing that he'd even noticed fans sharing concerns after noticing he was losing weight.
"It basically got to the point over the last three years where I just couldn’t finish meals."
"If I would eat a burger, the whole burger, obviously chewed up and everything like that, would be sat in my oesophagus," he continued.
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"And then slowly throughout the day it would like drip through into my stomach. It never just went through into my stomach all of this time.
"And that's what caused my acid reflux."
The content creator went on to explain that he'd undergone a number of tests at the hospital, including an endoscopy, CT scans and a barium swallow test to confirm his diagnosis.
After oesophageal achalasia was confirmed by the doctor, Deyes revealed he'd been able to undergo a procedure to help loosen the muscle, which involved having a balloon inserted down his throat.
"I think it took four minutes, or six minutes, I can't remember, and then it was done," Deyes said of the procedure, adding that balloon dilation has varying success for patients.