For hip-hop legend Rev. Run and his wife Justine Simmons, diabetes runs in the family, and they know first-hand: it’s deadly.
Both of their fathers suffered from the disease and Justine’s young cousin died from diabetes in her 30s, leaving behind two children. That fear of not being around for their children, including their youngest daughter, 7-year-old Miley, and their first grandchild, newborn Ava, inspired the couple to get screened for diabetes and to take charge of their health.
“When I look in my children’s eyes, I look at my wife, I know I’m over 45, I’m African American—that puts me double at risk for diabetes. That makes me get teary-eyed,” Rev. Run tells Guideposts.org. “If you don’t want to get screened for yourself, do it for your loved ones.”
More than 1/3 of Americans are at risk for diabetes and the Simmonses are teaming up with leading diabetes care company Novo Nordisk, creators of the website AskScreenKnow.com, to help everyone understand the risk factors for the disease and to provide readers with the tools they need to get healthy.
If you’re over 45, overweight, lacking in physical activity and have high blood pressure and a family history of diabetes, the Simmonses want you to know: you’re at risk. If you are also African American, your risk of diabetes doubles. They are urging everyone this holiday season to visit your doctor and get screened specifically for the disease.
Fortunately for Rev. Run and Justine, their screens came back negative and neither of them currently suffer from diabetes. Still, they are taking steps to cut their risk factors down by making sure that they and their family eat better and stay active.
“We’ve been staying healthy by eating right. That’s at the top of the list for us, shedding pounds. What’s in our refrigerator is changing dramatically,” Rev. Run says. They also make sure to get their exercise in.
“I don’t have a trainer,” Justine says. “We walk [everyday]. We eat vegetables, fresh fruit,” and even their kids help make sure there’s always healthy food in the house.
“It’s a family affair,” says Rev. Run. That’s the key to staying in good health.
