List of Indian Celebrities Who Diagnosed with Diabetes

Indian celebrities diagnosed with diabetes

In simple words, Diabetes mellitus is a common metabolic disease that causes high blood sugar levels in an individual. The glucose that our body extracts from the food we eat is a primary energy source in humans. On the other hand, insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas, regulates the amount or metabolism of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates by stimulating the absorption of glucose present in your blood.

When a person is diagnosed with diabetes, it impairs the body’s insulin production, prevents from effectively using it, or shows a combination of both.

Although diabetes is a common medical issue and more than 30 million people in India have been diagnosed with it, one should not take it casually. If left untreated for longer durations, diabetes can increase heart stroke risk, nerve damage, atherosclerosis, burning in the heart, and many other heart-related diseases.

The general symptoms of diabetes found in people include:

  • Increased hunger
  • Frequent need for urinating
  • Unexpected weight loss
  • Feeling thirsty (or dry mouth)
  • Tiredness and unending fatigue
  • Decreased sex drive
  • Urinary tract infections in women
  • Skin infections or unexplained patches on the skin
  • Blurry vision
  • Upset stomach
  • Tingling in feet and hands

The three primary types of diabetes are:

  1. Type 1 diabetes- Type 1 diabetes is considered an acute autoimmune disease. In this type, your body’s immune system attacks and destroys beta cells (cells that produce insulin) found in the pancreas that are responsible for the production of insulin. Most importantly, what stimulates the attack is still being studied by doctors and remains unclear.

    According to numerous health specialists, environmental and genetic reasons can play a significant role in this attack, but there is not enough evidence to support the fact. Generally, children and younger teens are more likely to be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, so some people also know it as juvenile diabetes. Furthermore, the damage caused by this attack is permanent.
  2. Type 2 diabetes- Type 2 diabetes is a chronic health condition that makes your body insulin resistant right from its inception. It also affects the production of insulin in the pancreas that consequently results in irregular blood sugar levels. Various reasons such as genes, metabolic syndrome, broken beta cells, or extra weight can cause Type 2 diabetes in people from all age groups.
  3. Gestational diabetes– Gestational diabetes is a condition in pregnant ladies that causes variations in the blood sugar level. It does not occur in all pregnant women and generally resolves after delivery. Most importantly, it is further divided into two subcategories- class A1 and class A2.

    The difference between these two is that the former can make it through to the other side of the tunnel by just medications and a proper diet. On the other hand, the latter requires insulin doses and other medicines. Most importantly, it is known to very little that the symptoms for this type of diabetes are the same as the above two, including increased thirst, hunger, and frequent need for urinating.

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India is the 2nd most populous country in the world after China, and according to a recent survey, over 30 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes. According to the Crude Prevalence rate or CPR, the percentage of diabetic people in Indian urban areas is 9, whereas it is 3% in rural areas.

Although India is the 2nd most populous country globally after China, estimates show that it has the highest number of diabetic patients in the entire world. In other words, we can see common people, politicians, or actors with diabetes in larger numbers than anywhere else. Moreover, its become a growing concern in the nation as more and more people are coming under its purview.

Most importantly, it is known to very few that the prevalence of the type of diabetes differs significantly from the rest of the countries in the world. Here, Type 1 diabetes is rare along with ⅓ of people with type 2 diabetes being overweight and obese. Moreover, Indian people are being diagnosed with diabetes from a very young age, indicating how common chronic health conditions have become in this country.

List of Bollywood Actors diagnosed with Diabetes

Samantha Prabhu, a popular South actress, mentioned that she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2013. However, with her healthy eating and determination, she overcame it and is now one of the fit actresses. She is a great food lover but avoids eating chocolates and sweets due to her diagnosis of diabetes.

Bahubali actor, Rana Duggabati, revealed that he was suffering from failed kidneys, calcification around the heart, and BP issues in 2019. He is a well-known actor and producer, known for his Telugu films, and has received various awards. However, he never hides his obsession for food and was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. After which, he tries to avoid consuming excessive sugar.

Amitabh Bachchan is a great actor, producer, TV host, and playback singer of Hindi cinema, diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. He is regarded as one of the most influential B-town actors. In fact, he has been associated with several health campaigns, like, Polio, TB, Hepatitis B, and Diabetes, and urged people to get tested.

Jitendra is a great actor and producer of Hindi films. Jitendra took good care of his health but was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 77. He, too, practices yoga and is diet conscious when controlling his diabetes levels.

A few years ago, Rekha was diagnosed with diabetes and always takes a small amount of food to maintain blood sugar levels. In addition, she maintains a strict workout routine, including meditation and yoga.


Sonam Kapoor is one of the major healthy lifestyle promoters and a big Bollywood icon. She is highly renowned and admired for her great fashion sense in the industry. However, this fashionista was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at a very young age of 17 years. This actress with diabetes included yoga, squash, and workout in her daily routine to tackle the disease apart from insulin and prescribed medications.


Kamal Hassan is popularly known as one of the industry’s easy-going and versatile actors. He fought the gruesome Type 1 diabetes with a healthy lifestyle, regular yoga, and a very strict diet plan. He once talked about it in a interview wherein he makes fun of it by saying that seeing sugar level in blood is fine until it’s not showing on the face.


A popular and highly respected host of the pre-match Indian Premier League  (IPL), an actor and politician, Gaurav Kapoor suffered the unbearable consequences of diabetes for many years. The VJ earlier mentioned in an interview that earlier he had Type 1 diabetes, which later turned into Type 2. With constant traveling, workload, and little time for self, it became difficult for him to follow a proper healthy routine.

Most importantly, he didn’t let this disease win and fought bravely by choosing a healthy lifestyle and nutritious diet.


Sudha Chandran, one of the biggest Indian television and film actresses, is adored for her outstanding performance in various movies such as Malamal Weekly and Yaar Meri Zindagi. She is one of the many Indian celebrities with diabetes who fought against all odds with a brave heart and smile on the face. Sudha is very particular with her diet plan and prefers homemade food over processed snacks.   


This handsome guy from the other side of the border has won million hearts with his applaudable acting skills and generous nature. Sadly, he, too was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was just 17 years old. The ‘Khoobsurat’ actor uses a wireless pump that calculates the intake of calories and ingeniously determines the dose of insulin he will need. 


This amazing American songwriter, actor, and singer took seven vows of the holy matrimony ceremony on 1 December 2018 with Priyanka Chopra. He was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was just 13 years old and since then he is taking insulin shots and medications. It is also believed that the charming guy also uses glucose monitoring gadgets to intake the right amount of insulin and maintain balance in his blood sugar levels. Nick believes in healthy snacking on nuts, fruits, and berries than processed snacks, a low-carb but high-protein diet to help him tackle the disease. 


List of Cricketers diagnosed with Diabetes:

A former Indian cricketer, commentator, coach, and basically one of the highly respectable men in the country who played cricket for 18 years. He was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and later joined hands with Novo Nordisk (a non-profit foundation supporter) fighting against diabetes. He spread awareness about the disease by conducting seminars and workshops, etc. throughout India.


31-year-old Sophie Devine was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 15, a condition she has lived with since then. And, not just lived, but also played cricket and hockey at the elite level. But, she has not let diabetes come in her way by following a strict diet and fitness routine.

Wasim Akram diabetes was one of the major news headlines during 1997 when the famous cricketer got tested for diabetes during the Test cricket series. The former Pakistani cricket captain suffered Type 1 diabetes when he was 30 years old. According to him, the first few symptoms he noticed include losing weight, constant fatigue, tiredness, and increased thirst.


The Type 1 diabetes impaired the former New Zealand cricketer Craig Cumming from producing enough insulin or using it effectively for the exact purpose. After his life became dependent on regular insulin injections and special medications, the cricketer began making healthy adjustments in his daily routine. Moreover, he also kept a keen eye on his insulin levels to beat the hell out of this monster.


This right-handed Australian batsman is one of the many cricketers with diabetes. He played one test match in the year 1912 and 33 top-notch matches for Queensland. However, sadly this iconic batsman fought courageously for many years but died on 17 November 1921 at 34 due to diabetes.


Craig McMillan is a former New Zealand cricketer and coach suffered Type 1 diabetes at a very tender age of 15 years. He once said in an interview that ever since he was diagnosed with this disease, he tried to carry a jellybeans bag wherever he goes to help him maintain his sugar levels if they were running low. He taught many young and older people to fearlessly stand against diabetes and continue to live a healthy and happy life.


Dirk Wellham is a right-handed batsman from New South Wales who played cricket from his heart for 60 years despite being diagnosed with diabetes. He and many other sportspeople with diabetes gave an inspirational story for the younger generation to never stop believing in themselves, which helped him score 636 international runs in just 22 matches.


List of Indian Politicians diagnosed with Diabetes:

Nitin Gadkari, the former president of one of the major Indian political parties, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), went through a lot after being confirmed for Type 2 diabetes. It became so difficult for him to balance his blood sugar levels to go through gastric bypass surgery for treating the disease. He was also suffering from diabetic nephropathy that caused damage to his kidneys, making the treatment a necessity to live.  


Being a serious diabetic patient where he had to take up to 4 insulin shots a day, the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, still stood firm for his duties. This Indian politician went on a hunger strike once for 15 days and then again for 10 days despite his condition. He admitted about his diabetic health condition in an interview where he also stated that if a person like him did not eat anything for 3-4 hours, he would collapse and die soon. 


Like many other Indian politicians with diabetes, Devendra Fadnavis suffered from Type 2 diabetes health conditions. According to his health specialist, the politician discovered his illness in 2015 and was also overweight during the time of health check-ups. However, after following an extremely strict diet and being consistent with workout and exercise for many months, Devendra Fadnavis is successfully shedding extra pounds. 


The former prime minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, was also diagnosed with diabetes due to which he had to make certain changes in his routine. Doctors advised him to follow a strict and rigid dietary regimen to help him keep his chronic diabetes and blood sugar levels under control. Moreover, doctors also prescribed special proteins and foods that must eat to remain healthy.


  1. Switch your unhealthy diet with a nutritious one filled with veggies, fruits, low-fat dairy, brown rice, healthy fats, etc. 
  2. Using high quantities of salt and seasonings in your meals also increases the risk of high blood pressure that can further cause heart strokes, burning sensation, and other health conditions.
  3. Cutting back on sugar can be really helpful for people diagnosed with diabetes. The best way to do this is swapping soft drinks or packed juices with fresh fruit juice, vegetable juice, and smoothies. Sugar-less coffee, black tea, coconut water are some healthier alternatives.

Hope you have found the good information here in the list of Indian celebrities with Diabetes. If we have missed any information hereplease share us in the comments below.

Piya C is internet savvy health and lifestyle blogger. She covers beauty, relationship, diet and many more topics. #blogger #author Want to connect with me? Follow me. I reply my every DM & tweet.

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