
Mary Tyler Moore Proved Living Well With Type 1 Diabetes Is Possible
Actress and activist Mary Tyler Moore passed away this week at the age of 80. No cause of death was immediately available, but Moore spoke publicly for many years about her struggle with type 1 diabetes, with which she was diagnosed at age 33.
In a statement, Moore’s rep referred to her as “a groundbreaking actress, producer, and passionate advocate for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.” She had served as International Chairman for the foundation, now known as JDRF, since 1984.
"Mary Tyler Moore’s legacy is that of a woman who tirelessly committed herself to helping the millions with T1D," said JDRF in a statement. "Over the past 30 years, Moore educated about and increased awareness of T1D around the world and raised millions of dollars for research that will one day lead to a cure. Among her efforts, Moore was actively involved in JDRF Children’s Congress, sitting alongside children diagnosed with T1D to share their stories with elected officials on Capitol Hill and demonstrate the importance of continued T1D research funding."
According to the National Institutes of Health’s MedlinePlus magazine, Moore’s frequent lobbying visits to Congress over the years helped increase JDRF’s research budget to more than $1 billion.
Moore became active in diabetes advocacy after she was diagnosed with the lifelong disease herself. In 1997, she told the Archive of American Television that her diabetes was discovered when she was in the hospital after suffering a miscarriage.
“While normal blood sugar levels are to be somewhere between 70 and 110, mine was 750,
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