Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Ellen Page: "I am here today because I am gay"

Actress Ellen Page, who starred as a pregnant teenager in Juno in 2006, has declared she is lesbian.

"I am tired of hiding and I am tired of lying by omission," she told an audience in Las Vegas on Friday.

The 26-year-old actress said she felt "a personal obligation and a social responsibility" to come out.

She is the latest in a series of high-profile figures in the US to declare their sexuality, including American footballer, Michael Sam.

Page, who was born in Canada, was addressing a conference on teenage homosexuality hosted by the Human Rights Campaign, which lobbies for the rights of those in same-sex relationships.

"I am here today because I am gay," she said, prompting a standing ovation.

Her voice trembling, she said: "I suffered for years because I was scared to be out.

"My spirit suffered, my mental health suffered and my relationships suffered. And I'm standing here with all of you on the other side of that pain."

Page, who was nominated for an Oscar for Juno, also criticised the "pervasive stereotypes about masculinity and femininity that define how we are all supposed to act, dress and speak".

The actress, who enjoyed central roles in X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006 and the science fiction movie Inception in 2010, is also due to appear later this year in X-Men: Days of Future Past.