12 celebrities living with diabetes – and how they manage their health, from Tom Hanks, Salma Hayek and Halle Berry, to Nick Jonas and even Kate Moss’ teenage daughter, Lila Moss
- American Horror Story star Billy Porter wrote about his HIV and type 2 diabetes, while his castmate Gabourey Sidibe’s diagnosis prompted her to get weight-loss surgery
- Tennis legend Billie Jean King is careful about her diet – while ‘maintaining a healthy relationship with food’ – and Hayek got gestational diabetes while pregnant with Valentina
According to a 2020 report by the CDC, 34.2 million Americans had diabetes in 2018 – and even A-listers count among those numbers too.
Meet 12 celebrities who have spoken out about their diabetes, whether they have type 1, type 2 or gestational.
Nick Jonas
Nick Jonas wrote a song about his type 1 diagnosis, A Little Bit Longer.
For people with diabetes, the body does not properly process food so that it can be turned into energy. If you have type 1 diabetes, your body cannot produce insulin, a hormone that allows the body to convert sugar from food into energy, and this can cause dangerously high blood sugar levels.
I have full control of my day to day life with this disease
Jonas was diagnosed when he was just 13 years old. He wrote about his diagnosis in a 2018 Instagram post of two pictures of him side by side – one right after he was diagnosed in 2005 and one in 2018.
“13 years ago today I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. The picture on the left is me a few weeks after my diagnosis. Barely 100 pounds after having lost so much weight from my blood sugar being so high before going to the doctor where I would find out I was diabetic,” he wrote.
“On the right is me now. Happy and healthy. Prioritising my physical health, working out and eating healthy and keeping my blood sugar in check. I have full control of my day to day life with this disease, and I’m so grateful to my family and loved ones who have helped me every step of the way. Never let anything hold you back from living your best life,” he continued.
Billy Porter
When writing about his HIV status in a moving piece for The Hollywood Reporter in May, Billy Porter also revealed he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.