John Legend’s Family Has a Stronger Bond Amid Type 1 Diabetes Diagnosis

When Chrissy Teigen and John Legend’s son, Miles, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was 6, it came about by accident. According to Teigen, Miles had become sick at summer camp when doctors began to notice inconsistencies.

“The doctors knew something else was off about his blood tests,” she wrote on Instagram at the time. “After more testing, we learned he is in the ‘honeymoon period’ of a lifetime of [Type 1 diabetes].”

According to the American Diabetes Association, of the 2 million Americans with Type 1 diabetes in 2021, about 304,000 were under the age of 18. For anyone newly diagnosed and their family, understanding how to manage the disease can seem daunting. But according to Legend, dealing with it together has only made their family stronger.

Legend Admits Youngest Siblings Don’t ‘Know What’s Going On’

“The Voice” coach told “People” that Miles’ diagnosis had brought everyone closer.

“His condition is also building grit in him, and as a family, I think it’s building it in us as well because we are all rallying together to support him,” Legend said. His thoughts were reminiscent of what he said a year ago, after they first revealed Miles’ Type 1 diabetes.

“My personality is one where I’m very optimistic and I’m very practical,” Legend said. “As soon as I learned that he had this I knew it was going to be life-changing for him and for us, but I’m also like, ‘We can do this.’ We’ve got great advice and lots of people offering support to help us learn.”

He also admitted that Miles’ diabetes was a bit easier for his 9-year-old sister, Luna, to understand than for their two-year-olds, Esti and Wren.

“The younger ones don’t really know what’s going on, but when they see the devices and things he has to wear, they sometimes have questions,” Legend explained.

Father & Son Bonded at Diabetes Summer Camp

Recently, Legend found a new way to bond with Miles while also learning more about Type 1 diabetes. On July 17, the “All of Me” singer posted a series of photos showing him with Miles. In the pictures, the father-son duo climbed rocks, hiked through Yosemite, and posed in front of some giant, ancient trees.

“I took Miles on a boys’ trip to a wonderful diabetes family camp,” he wrote, tagging the nonprofit Diabetes Youth Families. Loved having one-on-one time with him at Yosemite. And it was so cool for him to be around a bunch of kids his age and counselors with diabetes. I learned a lot and I’m so grateful to everyone involved.”