Healthy Living

Nick Jonas Receives Disney Hero Award for His Efforts in Diabetes Awareness

Nick Jonas Receives Disney Hero Award for His Efforts in Diabetes Awareness

The National Diabetes Statistics Report of 2017 was released by the CDC’s Division of Diabetes. The stats are staggering. Nearly 1 in 10 Americans have diabetes, and approximately 1 in 3 Americans have prediabetes. While the disease is fairly common, there is still a monumental lack of awareness and many still do not understand the challenges diabetic patients face.  Disney Star and solo artist, Nick Jonas has played a tremendous role in advocating for diabetes. 

Nick Jonas has been a longtime diabetes awareness advocate. In fact, it was in 2015 when he co-founded an organization called "Beyond Type 1." Its goal is to leverage the power of social media to bring about a new awareness of what it is like to live with diabetes. It gives focus on educating people about the disease and helping researchers discover new treatments and, hopefully, a cure for diabetes.

Through the grants and programs that they offer, they wish to improve the lives of type 1 diabetes patients. Recently, Nick Jonas has received the Disney Hero Award at the Radio Disney Music Awards for his remarkable achievements as a patient advocate. 

Nick Jonas's diabetes diagnosis

Nick was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes back in 2005. Before he was even diagnosed, he started showing the most common symptoms like weight loss, constant thirst and frequent urination. In just 2-3 weeks, he lost about 15 pounds. He had noticeable changes in his mood, becoming irritable and feeling drained. 

Because of his symptoms, he went to see a doctor while he was on tour with his brothers. This is where he discovered he had diabetes. His blood sugar level was well over 700, which is dangerously high. 

Despite how difficult it has been, he is very thankful for the support given by the people around him, especially his mom, who accompanied him in the hospital every night and when he toured.  Apart from taking insulin shots, he also checked his blood sugar about 12 times a day.

An inside look at Nick’s life with diabetes

Throughout the past years, Nick was able to manage his diabetes well without following a special diet. In fact, he can still eat whatever he wants, as long as he takes the right amount of insulin beforehand. He has also used a device called the OmniPod in which he needed to enter the carbs, and it would then suggest the amount of insulin needed. During the times when he gets low, he drinks orange juice because it works best for him. He also takes an arsenal of vitamins and supplements.