John Stapleton has issued a defiant update on living with Parkinson's as he revealed the disease has driven a 'downturn in his lifestyle'.

The broadcaster, 79, revealed his diagnosis in a short film for BBC One's Morning Live last year. 

Now, he has opened up about how he 'is doing his best to cope' and that you can still live a full life 'if you behave yourself'. 

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative condition in which parts of the brain become progressively damaged over many years, with symptoms including tremors and slow movement, according to the NHS.

Speaking on GB News on Thursday, John said: 'Lots of people live a normal life with Parkinson's, so I'm aiming to do the same.  

'I'm taking the tablets. I'm doing the exercises my expert is telling me to do. I'm speaking as well as I can, because I need a speech therapist to talk more slowly and more clearly. I also have difficulty swallowing. And the latest thing is I've had difficulty with my balance, hence this stick I've got by my side all the time now.'

'But I'm learning to live with it, to do my best job,' he added.

'[Parkinson's] is a neurological disorder which means your body doesn't coordinate as it used to. 

'It's the fastest growing neurological complaint in the world. We don't quite know why, possibly because more of us are living longer. But as I say, you can live an enormous life with it if you behave yourself.'

John continued: 'The future is surviving, basically and doing my best to cope with this downturn in my lifestyle, really. 

'But as I say, I could be far worse off. I've got great mates, a lovely son and a lovely daughter-in-law. 

''It's not going to go away. All I can do is control it.' 

Revealing how he noticed something was wrong, John said: '[I recognised that something was not right] about three years ago. 

'My mother had it so I recognised that I'd got the old tremor. The tremor makes getting dressed difficult. I went to see this specialist, and he said, "It's not Parkinson's yet, it's what we call a benign essential tremor".

'I said, "What causes that?" He said, "We haven't a clue, but don't worry about it, unless it gets worse".

'It did, of course, and so I recognised the symptoms. I'd see my mother decline over four or five years but she didn't get didn't have all the help I have. So I knew what to expect.'

John's mother June died in May 2007, six years after being diagnosed with Parkinson's herself and two weeks short of her 85th birthday. 

Last year, John admitted he was 'relieved' when his mother died and said he doesn't want to suffer like she did.

John appeared on TV at the time to share his opinion on the new proposed law to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.

Under the plans, people diagnosed with a life-limiting disease who have less than six months to live would be permitted to obtain and administer lethal medicines that would trigger instant death.

However, the new law would not be applicable to people with physical disabilities and mental ill health, with Parkinson's falling into that category.

Discussing his diagnosis, John admitted: 'I knew it was coming. I'd watched my mother go, she went from a lively, brilliant lady to a lady who was almost prisoner in her own home. 

'I had all the classic symptoms that she had, I just went for confirmation basically.'

Later in the interview, host Lorraine asked: 'You will have had all these really difficult conversations and one in particular this week, and I hope you don't mind me talking about this, is of course the proposed law about assisted dying.

'You've talked about this before and you and Nick will have talked about this, your son, very hard to discuss.'

Sharing his opinion on the divisive proposed law, the broadcaster explained: 'I take the view that if I'm suffering very badly you have my permission to take me across to Switzerland and do the business as long as it doesn't get you in trouble.

'This new bill, in principal I am for it, but it doesn't really apply to Parkinson's people because Parkinson's doesn't kill you. 

'You can't say "In six months you're going to die from Parkinson's" so at the moment it doesn't really apply to me.'