Diabetes is not a selective disease. It does affect celebrities and other public figures who can afford top doctors and treatment facilities. Several top entertainers must deal with this condition everyday. They include Halle Berry, Tom Hanks, Nick Jonas, Salma Hayek, Gladys Knight, Drew Carey and Vanessa Williams.
Here is what others are doing to avoid the awful complications of this disease . . .
Sharon Stone – “I just do all the things you’re supposed to do. I eat right, I sleep, I work out, I’m happy. I choose the good things.”
Patti LaBelle – LaBelle discovered she had diabetes after passing out on stage during a performance. Since then, she’s overhauled her diet, trading in her favorite seven-cheese mac for egg whites and oatmeal. Her mother, who also had diabetes, needed to amputate her legs while her uncle went blind from the disease, Labelle told People. But, she says, “You can take hold of the situation. I feel great now. I live the right way. I wear fierce clothes. Everything I do now, I do it proud. I am a diabetic!”
George Lucas – the well-known film maker – was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after getting a physical for the armed services. The odds were against him since he had a family history of the disease. Lucas is still going at 74 years old. He has learned to deal with his condition. He maintains an active lifestyle and eats a clean diet.
Sherri Shepherd – “If you have diabetes, it’s not a death sentence. And if you’re pre-diabetic, don’t sit in the dark and try to ignore it. So many people are paralyzed with fear, but knowledge is power,” Shepherd told U.S. News.
Gabourey Sidibe – “I truly didn’t want to worry about all the effects that go along with diabetes,” she told People. “I genuinely [would] worry all the time about losing my toes.” In her book, This Is Just My Face: Try Not to Stare she adds, “It has taken me years to realize that what I was born with is all beautiful. I did not get this surgery to be beautiful. I did it so I can walk around comfortably in heels. I want not to be in pain every time I walk up a flight of stairs.”
Theresa May – Prime Minister of England – “The crucial thing to me is being a diabetic doesn’t stop you from doing anything,” she said during a Facebook Live interview.
Billie Jean King – “Anyone can develop diabetes, even an athlete,” the legendary tennis player told Health. The thing she misses the most since her type 2 diagnosis? Bagels.
Jerry Mathers – The Leave it to Beaver actor manages to keep his type 2 diabetes at bay by exercising and focusing on portion control, even at the holidays. The 69-year-old reminds his fans on Home Cures, “Don’t overindulge. There’s a tomorrow.”
Jay Cutler – The Miami Dolphins quarterback was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2008 but that hasn’t stopped him from achieving his game day goals. “When I first got it I was 24, I just kind of ate whatever I wanted, did whatever I wanted, lived however I wanted. As I get older and maybe a little bit wiser you realize how much stuff affects your body and what it can do,” he told ESPN. Now Cutler stays on track by cutting out carbs and eating clean.
Paul Sorvino – The 78-year-old actor had trouble giving up his favorite indulgences after his type 2 diagnosis, but his daughter Mira Sorvino helped him stay on track with a balanced diet.
Elvis Presley, the king of Rock and Roll, suffered from diabetes which was probably brought on by stress of being an in-demand entertainer. Unfortunately, he used drugs to fix the high sugar problem but we all know that this is a band-aid and not a long-term fix. He eventually succumb to the disease. Learn from his mistakes.
P.S. Visit How to Prevent Pre-diabetes to learn how to lower your risk of developing complications of diabetes.