Why DO so many celebrities catch Lyme disease? As Serena Williams' husband is hit by the bug, we ask the experts whether something in the lifestyle of the rich and famous makes them more susceptible

Serena Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, is nan latest successful a drawstring of celebrated faces to opportunity they person been struck by tick-borne Lyme disease.

The Reddit co-founder joins nan likes of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills prima Yolanda Hadid and her daughter, exemplary Bella Hadid, singer Justin Bieber, actor Ben Stiller and comic Amy Schumer successful having nan condition.

Lyme illness is simply a bacterial infection dispersed by ticks and tin origin wide flu-like symptoms, including fatigue, headache, swollen joints and a fever, which tin past for a fewer weeks, but for reasons not yet understood, immoderate patients suffer for years. 

So why does it look for illustration truthful galore of nan rich | and celebrated are being diagnosed pinch it?

Professor Paul Hunter, an master successful infectious diseases from nan University of East Anglia, told MailOnline location could beryllium immoderate factors that make celebrities much susceptible to Lyme disease.

He said nan stars' accrued leisure clip and typically greater entree to nan wilder outdoor areas wherever ticks reside, than normal people, could simply make it a numbers game. 

'If location is simply a rich | and celebrated aliases people bias successful this, it's astir apt because they walk much clip stepping astir successful wooded parkland, much money to spell retired to those areas, aliases person large homes pinch these sorts of places,' Professor Hunter added. 

The truth that celebrities are much apt to unrecorded successful nan US, wherever Lyme illness is much famously prevalent, could beryllium different factor.

'As you're stepping on nan ticks jump connected your legs and crawl their measurement up...have a humor feast and springiness you Lyme disease,' he said.

'If you spell stepping successful these sorts of places nan champion point to do is check, erstwhile you get home, that you don't person immoderate ticks connected you and if you person region them safely.'

Mr Ohanian 41, elaborate his test successful a bid of posts connected X/Twitter yesterday, stating medics told him he had Lyme illness aft aggregate aesculapian procedures.

'Doing a afloat artillery of wellness scans, tests, etc, and recovered retired I person lyme disease,' said nan tech entrepreneur, who is begetter to 2 children pinch nan tennis icon. 

He added 'Wild. No symptoms, thankfully, but gonna treat.'

Mr Ohanian continued: 'I've sewage a loved 1 who had it a fewer years back, showed tons symptoms etc and conscionable couldn't fig it retired until they tested him for it and past recovered it (treated it successfully, too),'

'I walk truthful small clip successful nan wilderness/northeast this was rather a surprise.'

He said he was 'gonna drawback immoderate antibiotics' to combat nan ailment, adding, 'Can't support maine down, tick!' pinch a image of The Tick animation character.

Professor Hunter said testing for Lyme illness was a complex, and sometimes controversial, taxable pinch immoderate tests offered by immoderate backstage clinics not recognised by wellness authorities. 

Clinicians person antecedently warned that immoderate clinics are efficaciously offering Lyme illness test connected demand for patients seeking an reply for symptoms, existent aliases imagined.

This tin peculiarly beryllium nan lawsuit for group who suffer 'chronic' aliases ongoing Lyme illness symptoms that tin past for years.  

Experts for illustration Professor Hunter opportunity immoderate chronic Lyme illness cases are surely real, but others are apt to beryllium suffering from different conditions. 

'There are group who do get longer word symptoms but astir apt not arsenic often arsenic group who judge they have,' he said. 

'A scope of symptoms, longer term, are headaches, cervix stiffness, rashes, facial palsy which is partial paralysis of look muscles, arthritis and associated symptom is simply a communal one, intermittent symptom successful tendons, palpitations, dizziness, inflammation, nervus pain.

'The problem is each of those are rather communal successful nan organization successful nan whole, immoderate group peculiarly arsenic you get older get associated symptom rather often which tin conscionable beryllium deterioration and tear, rheumatoid arthritis, aliases Lyme disease.

'Distinguishing them, different than by definitive humor tests, is not easy.' 

Professor Hunter added nan truth that Mr Ohanian had recorded a affirmative result, but had nary symptoms, astir apt meant he had Lyme illness successful nan past and simply had signs of his immune strategy having tackled it.

This, if true, would mean he is taking antibiotics for nary aesculapian logic — thing that tin beryllium dangerous. 

A big of different celebs person besides shared their conflict pinch Lyme illness successful caller years. 

Yolanda Hadid said that she had suffered heavy slump amid a pileup of symptoms for nan amended portion of a decade which she attributed to chronic Lyme.

'I can’t statesman to picture nan darkness, nan symptom and nan hellhole I lived done each day,' nan socialite told British Vogue in February 2021. 'This illness brought maine to my knees.'

Her daughter, Bella besides past twelvemonth described really she had undergone 100 days of treatment amid a conflict pinch nan information that stretched astir 15 years.

Musical creator Justin Bieber said, successful January of 2020, that doctors had diagnosed him pinch Lyme disease after receiving nasty remarks astir his appearance. 

'While a batch of group kept saying "Justin Bieber looks for illustration s***, connected meth" etc. they grounded to recognize I've been precocious diagnosed pinch Lyme disease, not only that but had a superior lawsuit of chronic mono which affected my, skin, encephalon function, energy, and wide health,' nan Grammy-winning creator wrote connected Instagram.

Actor Ben Stiller told The Hollywood Reporter successful 2011 that he'd been diagnosed pinch nan ailment successful 2010.

'I sewage it successful Nantucket, Massachusetts, a mates of years ago,' Stiller told nan outlet. 'My knee became inflamed and they couldn’t fig retired what it was, past they recovered retired it was Lyme. I’m symptom-free now, but Lyme doesn’t ever time off your system. It’s a really reliable thing.' 

And comic Amy Schumer said connected Instagram successful September of 2020 that she had caught Lyme disease, informing her followers of nan medicine she had been taking.

'Anyone get LYME this summer? I sewage it and I'm connected doxycycline,' Schumer said. 'I person possibly had it for years. Any advice? Can you person a solid of vino aliases 2 connected it? I cognize to enactment retired of nan sun. I'm besides taking these herbs from cape cod called lyme-2. I besides want to opportunity that I consciousness bully and americium excited to get free of it.'

Lyme disease, which has historically been recovered successful nan North East of US, but has precocious dispersed further afield to different states, tin beryllium difficult to diagnose. 

The first motion of nan disease, which is besides recovered successful nan UK and Europe, is simply a tell-tale bullseye rash that develops wherever nan personification was bitten, but this only appears connected immoderate people. 

This rash tin look up to 3 months aft nan bite. 

Sufferers past create wide flu-like symptoms, including fatigue, headache, swollen joints and a fever, which tin past for a fewer weeks.

The hold betwixt nan bite, nan rash which whitethorn not look and nan wide symptoms which could beryllium to a assortment of different conditions, intends patients tin struggle to get a diagnosis. 

Two humor tests that tin diagnose Lyme illness are available, but nan NHS warns they tin beryllium unreliable successful nan early stages of nan disease. 

A people of antibiotics is typically capable to dainty astir Lyme illness patients, though nan process tin return respective weeks.

However, for reasons scientists are still exploring, immoderate group pinch nan illness tin suffer ongoing symptoms for years.

The NHS warns that, arsenic this shape of nan illness is still not understood, location is nary agreed upon treatment. 

Previous investigation has suggested nan immense mostly of group diagnosed pinch Lyme illness do not really person nan condition.   

Experts from John Hopkins University successful nan US recovered that retired of a sample of complete 1,200 patients diagnosed pinch Lyme illness complete 13 years, three-quarters were not affected, according to golden modular humor tests.

Publishing their findings successful nan journal Open Forum Infectious Diseases, they said this had led to patients being commonly fixed 'unnecessary antibiotic treatment'.

About 850 group successful England had laboratory confirmed Lyme illness successful England past year, according to Government figures.

However, an additional 1,000 to 2,000 group were diagnosed pinch nan illness without laboratory testing. 

Only up to 1 successful 20 tick bites are thought to origin Lyme illness successful England, though consequence varies by circumstantial area and clip of year. 

The telltale symptoms of Lyme Disease that nary 1 should ignore... 

A rash 

A rash is 1 of nan astir evident signs of Lyme illness to look retired for. 

The erythema migrans (EM) rash, often referred to arsenic a bull's-eye rash owed to its reddish information rings, should beryllium treated consecutive away, says nan kindness Lyme Disease UK. 

However, nan rash doesn't ever coming successful nan aforesaid way, particularly connected darker skin, and a 3rd of group do not create a rash astatine all. 

It tin besides not return connected a ringing style and alternatively person a coagulated aliases bruise-like appearance.

The behaviour of immoderate rash aft a tick wound is nan astir important point to beryllium alert of, warns Lyme Disease UK. 

An EM rash takes astatine slightest 3 days, and successful immoderate cases up to 3 months, to appear. 

It mostly isn't itchy, painful, aliases hot, and gradually spreads outwards. 

However, if you person redness aliases itchiness instantly aft a tick wound is usually a histamine reaction. 

Flu-like symptoms

Not everyone develops a rash.

Some group acquisition flu-like symptoms.

Often likened to a 'summer flu', Lyme Disease UK says immoderate group tin get headaches, a stiff neck, musculus symptom and fatigue. 

Some mini children whitethorn besides person behavioural changes arsenic they are incapable to articulate really they are feeling, nan kindness adds. 

If Lyme illness is near untreated aliases if it is not treated early on, weeks, months aliases moreover years later much superior symptoms tin develop. 

Pain and swelling successful nan joints, known arsenic inflammatory arthritis, is 1 of nan much superior symptoms that tin travel Lyme disease, according to nan authorities website. 

Muscle and associated symptom tin besides beryllium felt conscionable weeks aliases days aft getting tick bite, nan NHS says.  

Facial paralysis 

More superior symptoms tin create if Lyme illness is near untreated. 

Drooping connected 1 broadside of nan look aliases a weakness of your facial muscles is different denotation of an infection. 

That's because nan germs that causes Lyme illness tin besides harm nan tense system, including nan facial nerve.  

Weakness aliases a paralysis of nan facial muscles tin beryllium seen successful personification infected by Lyme illness and it usually affects connected broadside of nan face, according to nan kindness Facial Palsy UK. 

This denotation is particularly communal successful children, says Lyme Disease UK. 

Some group tin besides acquisition shooting nervus pains. 

This symptom tin consciousness crisp aliases prickly and travel nan people of nan nerve, according to nan authorities website.

Memory problems 

Being forgetful and struggling to ore are besides later symptoms of nan disease.  

The germs that causes Lyme illness tin not only origin numbness and nervus pain, but besides representation problems and trouble concentrating, according to nan authorities website. 

If nan illness is treated early connected it is little apt you will suffer pinch representation problems.  

Eye problems 

Blurry imagination could beryllium a motion of Lyme disease.  

The Borrelia burgdorferi germs that causes Lyme illness tin besides alteration your vision, according to nan kindness Guide Dogs UK.  

People tin acquisition floaters and inflammation typically successful nan precocious stages of nan disease. 

However. this imagination alteration tin beryllium impermanent and tin amended aliases resoluteness pinch curen of nan disease.  

In nan early stages nan illness tin origin conjunctivitis making your eyes bloodshot, irritated and swollen. 

Due to nan neurological effects of nan infection, it tin origin twitching anyplace connected nan assemblage including nan eyes. 

The kindness besides highlights a much uncommon oculus symptom, known arsenic optic neuritis. 

This is wherever nan optic nervus becomes inflamed, which tin lead to terrible oculus symptom and imagination loss, but experts opportunity it is unclear really Lyme illness straight causes this to happen.