These famous faces have more in common than their celebrity status: They’ve all spoken out about their experiences of living with type 1 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic health condition in which your body can’t produce insulin, a key hormone that converts glucose into energy. The condition typically strikes during childhood, but it can develop at any age, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It affects nearly 1.6 million people in the United States alone, per estimates from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) — and some of those people happen to be celebrities.
“The awareness [that] celebrities can bring to type 1 diabetes can make a big impact on the type 1 diabetes community as a whole,” says Brittany Poulson RDN, a certified diabetes care and education specialist (CDCES) based in Grantsville, Utah.
For example, a celebrity sharing details of his or her experience can shine a spotlight on some lesser-known aspects of the disease. “Sometimes parents don’t know the signs and symptoms of diabetes, such as excessive thirst and frequent urination,” Poulson says. Knowing the facts can help you get a diagnosis sooner, enabling you to get the care you need to manage diabetes before it gets out of control, she adds.
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Celebrities can also show people with type 1 diabetes that it is possible to lead a fulfilling life, despite the challenges that come with managing the condition. “A type 1 diabetes diagnosis is life-changing, and managing type 1 diabetes is a 24/7 rigorous balancing act that can be overwhelming at times,” says Aaron Kowalski, PhD, president and CEO of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), a global organization that provides advocacy, funds, and support for research into type 1 diabetes.
“By talking openly about how they manage type 1 diabetes and its challenges while pursuing careers and achieving lifelong goals, celebrity ambassadors and type 1 diabetes role models can inspire other adults and children,” Dr. Kowalski continues. “With proper management and determination, they, too, can achieve their dreams.”
If you’re in need of a little inspiration to help you take the steps needed to monitor and manage type 1 diabetes, remember you’re in famous company.
The year 2005 was an important one for teen idol Nick Jonas, one-third of pop group the Jonas Brothers. Not only was that the year that the band formed, it was also the year he found out he had type 1 diabetes. Though managing diabetes is often challenging with his touring schedule, Jonas — cofounder of Beyond Type 1, a nonprofit organization aiming to educate and empower people living with diabetes — tries to stay positive. When kids ask him how he manages his condition, he says, “I let them know that I don’t have it all figured out and chasing perfection with type 1 diabetes is impossible. There’s so much that’s out of your hands and finding a way to remain calm and patient in moments where diabetes interrupts your life is key.”
In October 2020, Jonas helped launch GetInsulin.org, a free online resource to help improve access to insulin for those living with diabetes.
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Justice Sonia Sotomayor was 7 years old when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. At the time of her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court in May 2009, some critics questioned whether Sotomayor's condition would affect her ability to serve. But in her climb from childhood in a public housing project, to studying at Princeton and Yale, to sitting on the nation's highest court, she has refused to let her diabetes hold her back. Sotomayor also encourages parents of children with diabetes to help their kids do likewise. As NPR reported in September 2019, she published the children’s book Just Ask!, in which "children with all sorts of challenges" work together a plant a garden.
“Don’t stand in the way of their dreams,” she told Diabetes Forecast. “Don’t stand in the way of their activities, don’t stand in the way of them taking control of their own lives. Teach them; don’t do it for them.”
Victor Garber’s acting career has spanned decades, and includes such films and television series as Titanic, Argo, Godspell, and Alias. Garber has also been living with type 1 diabetes for over 50 years, having received his diagnosis at the age of 12.
Growing up, Garber didn’t have a community who could understand what it was like to live with type 1 diabetes, as he noted in an interview with Beyond Type 1. But after spending two weeks at a diabetes camp with other children managing diabetes, he realized the importance of support networks for those with a chronic illness. Now, the Canadian actor takes part in social media campaigns to show kids with type 1 diabetes that they’re not alone. “I wanted to get out and say, ‘I’m just like you, and you’re like me, and I’m okay, and I’m a face — an older face — for type 1,’” he explained.
Garber is also a member of Beyond Type 1’s leadership council, and works to raise awareness and funds for diabetes research.
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Damon Dash jumped to fame as the former CEO and cofounder of Roc-A-Fella Records with Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter and Kareem "Biggs" Burke. Dash is a well-known name in the world of music, fashion, and movies — and, now, type 1 diabetes awareness. A self-described "OG of diabetes," according to an article published in July 2017 in Essence, he was diagnosed with the condition when he was 15 years old after experiencing weight loss, reduced appetite, and frequent urination.
Today, Dash works hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle. In an interview with The Undefeated in August 2017, Dash explained: “Diabetes is a silent killer. It’s something that doesn’t kill you overnight. It takes a minute. So you always have to be thinking about your future when it comes to taking care of diabetes.”
Actress Jean Smart has starred in movies including Garden State and Sweet Home Alabama, along with Broadway plays and TV shows such as Frasier and 24. Not only does Smart have a successful acting career, she is a dedicated mentor, fundraiser, and activist working on behalf of those living with type 1 diabetes. Smart, who was 13 when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, has volunteered for the JDRF and the ADA, and has spoken about her experiences living with diabetes at the Senate Special Committee on Aging.
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Bret Michaels is best known as a VH1 reality star (Rock of Love) and the lead singer of the rock band Poison. Speaking to Yahoo Lifestyle in February 2019, Michaels shared that he had been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 6, but didn't go public about his condition until he collapsed on stage due to low blood sugar in 1987.
Now, Michaels is an advocate for type 1 diabetes care and insulin access. In a segment on The Big Interview in October 2019, he told host Dan Rather about how living with diabetes prepared him for adversity he’d face in the music business: "It helped also to become tougher … as I got into the early parts of my career, and the critics were brutal,” he recalls. “I said, ‘If I can do five injections a day, and every day is a life-and-death struggle at times, I can surely deal with someone … throwing some words at me that don’t like me.”
Olympic swimmer Gary Hall Jr. was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1999, after a seeking an explanation for his lasting fatigue and constant thirst. At the time, Hall’s doctor told him he would never be able to swim competitively again; however, Hall proved doctors wrong in 2000, by taking home his first individual gold medal by way of the 50-meter freestyle race (a feat he repeated in 2004).
Now, Hall is involved in efforts to cure the illness that almost curtailed his career. He’s a member of JDRF, and travels across the United States to speak at fundraisers and advocate for diabetes research. Hall also hopes to spread a message of hope to young athletes with type 1 diabetes. “I have [type 1 diabetes], and I’ve been able to compete at the world’s highest level,” he told the International Olympic Committee in August 2020. “If I can do that then it’s okay for an 8-year-old soccer player or an athlete at a high school state meet.”
Diabetes runs in the family of Dorian Gregory, actor and former host of the long-running TV show Soul Train. Gregory, who has appeared on TV shows such as Charmed and Baywatch Nights, lost a grandmother to type 2 diabetes and has an aunt who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Gregory himself was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 9, and has served as a spokesman for JDRF. He gave this advice to BlackDoctor.org, an online health resource targeted to Black Americans: "Make the maintenance of your diabetes fit your construct. If you are forgetful, set alarms to remind you of what you [must do]. Know that life is our medicine, not just the shots or pills we take. Exercise, food, sleep, [and] management of stress [are] also our medicine. Take all your medicine, and you will be well."
RELATED: How Your Genes Can Play a Role in Whether You Develop Diabetes
Elliott Yamin may be best known for his singing voice, which won him third place in American Idol's fifth season, but he's also made news as a diabetes advocate. Yamin was diagnosed with diabetes at age 16, after his mother (who also has diabetes) recognized his lethargy, extreme thirst, and joint pains as warning signs of high blood sugar.
But Yamin wasn’t always so comfortable with his diagnosis. "I was in denial," he told Beyond Type 1 in 2016. "I didn’t understand how I could just go from one day being a healthy kid to all of a sudden having to cope with such a meticulous, incurable disease." However, he never let his condition get in the way of his star-studded dreams, adding: “My road was a hard one, and I’m stronger for it!”
American Idol contestant Crystal Bowersox nearly had to leave the 2010 competition when she went into diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a serious condition that can lead to coma or death. The DKA struck her suddenly — in an interview with Diabetes Forecast, Bowersox revealed that, although she had been diagnosed at age 6, she had hidden her diagnosis from producers and had not been regularly monitoring her blood sugar while on the show. She ended up hospitalized, and then Idol executive producer Ken Warwick told her she couldn’t continue in the competition.
That’s when she resolved to take control of her health, vowing that she would be more transparent about her health with the show’s producers. She told Diabetes Forecast: “For me to allow diabetes to control my life and possibly cost me everything that I’ve worked hard for — it just wasn’t going to happen.” She went on to claim second place on the show.
Bowersox is using her fame to speak out about diabetes awareness: In July 2018, she became a member of the leadership council for Beyond Type 1. She has also since teamed up with Lilly Diabetes in order to promote their Know Before The Low initiative, which aims to help people avoid unexpected blood sugar emergencies.
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