Lance Bass didn’t know that type 1.5 diabetes existed, until he was diagnosed with it. Here are 6 things he’s learned since.

Lance Bass is starting a new chapter when it comes to his health as he learns how to manage having type 1.5 diabetes, a slower-progressing condition that has characteristics of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

The *NSYNC star, 45, revealed he had type 2 diabetes back in March, after being diagnosed a few years prior. He told People that it was something he had developed during the COVID pandemic and that it led him to re-evaluate his lifestyle and diet.

Now, he tells Yahoo Life that the changes he was making and the medication he was taking weren’t helping him feel better. Bass found out that was because he was being treated for the wrong condition.

“I was so frustrated, and it really was affecting me because I just felt like I was really sick and I could not figure this out. …I felt like something was wrong with me,” Bass says of his unsuccessful treatment for type 2. “I just recently discovered that it was a misdiagnosis.”

While he’s still coming to terms with the latest diagnosis, Bass already feels more empowered in living with type 1.5 diabetes — which is also referred to as latent autoimmune diabetes. Here’s what the pop star has learned so far.

Type 1.5 diabetes exists

“I'm [type] 1.5, which I had no idea was a thing until a few weeks ago. But you know, it's interesting and it’s fascinating to me that there's a whole new level of diabetes that I had no clue about,” says Bass.

It’s not unusual that somebody with type 1.5 diabetes, which occurs later in life, is initially misdiagnosed as type 2, according to the Mayo Clinic. The difference is that type 1.5 is a result of an autoimmune disease that leads the pancreas to stop making insulin, which is the case for type 1 diabetics, whereas type 2 is when the body develops a resistance to insulin.

So while Bass was previously managing his diabetes with blood sugar monitoring and medication, he has now discovered that his treatment is insulin-dependent.

“I didn't realize that I was 1.5,” he says, “so I was doing some of the wrong things.”

Diabetes can affect all types of people

When Bass’s doctor told him years ago that his blood work indicated he might be pre-diabetes he couldn't quite believe it.

“I'm healthy, I work out, I eat right. There's no way I'm diabetic,” he recalls thinking. “And then finally, you know, I got my next blood test and the doctor said, ‘You’re full on diabetic.’ And that's when I started really taking this seriously.”

In hindsight, he realized that symptoms he'd been living with for years were because of diabetes.

“It really answered a lot of questions I had for a few years,” says Bass. “I would get really thirsty at times. I would be very lethargic a lot of the time. So now that I understand what diabetes does to me, I can totally recognize when my glucose is getting higher or lower.”

Using the Dexcom G7 continuous glucose monitor has taken the guesswork out of that process as well. “Every five minutes, I get a new reading and see exactly where my glucose is,” he says.

Health and wellness look different post-diagnosis

“Oddly, I tell people that there is a silver lining to being diagnosed with diabetes — you really care more about your health,” he says.

When it comes to food, for instance, Bass has prioritized vegetables and re-defined his relationship with sugary snacks. “I thought I was a good eater [before], but now I'm a really good eater,” he says.

His workouts have also changed. “I bumped my exercise up. I do more cardio,” he says. “I think I'm a much, much healthier person.”

Most importantly, he’s discovered new ways of managing his mental health, including meditating more and getting massages. “Knowing that stress really affects my diabetes in a major way has made me really attempt to relax more. So I brought my workload down, I try to take breaks as much as possible,” he says. “I’m just trying to make my brain as healthy as possible.”

Managing type 1.5 diabetes is a full-time job

Along with learning to eat right, sleep well and exercise more efficiently, Bass says that “the biggest learning curve” with type 1.5 diabetes has been trying to remember to have his insulin accessible.

“For four decades, I haven't had to remember to grab my insulin from the refrigerator before getting in the car," he says. "So I would say 50% of the time I forget my insulin back at home and you know, I go to breakfast or I'm out at lunch. I'm like, ‘Well, crap, I totally forgot it.’”

He adds: “You're always thinking of everything like, Did I get my insulin? Did I order my insulin? Is my insulin expired? Did I get my needles? Do I have my Dexcom ready? Is it about to expire this week? Did I get a prescription for it? There's so many things you have to think about when you're diabetic that it does, unfortunately, feel like a full-time job.”

He might have future doctors on his hands

Bass says that he’s leaned on his support system throughout this process, including his friends, his management, his husband, and of course, their two kids.

“They're two and a half right now, so they don't really understand it. But even at this age I'm very open and honest about everything with them,” he says of his twins — son Alexander James and daughter Violet Betty. “They love going to the doctor [with me], they get excited about shots and all that.”

Bass shares that his kids play doctor at home and that he shows them how he uses his glucose monitor. “I'll show them the little needle that sticks out, and they just think it's fascinating,” he says. “They're not scared of it at all. I explain over and over why I do this and what diabetes is, and you know, I don't know how much of that they're understanding. But you know, eventually they will.”

Visibility is important

“It's so important for me, especially being a public figure, to be visible as a diabetic. Especially for the younger generation that could be scared of what they're going through,” he says. “Having to put a Dexcom on or take a shot [of insulin] can be scary for kids. So if I can help make it seem any less scary at all, you know, I'm glad that I'm able to be a voice.”

Bass says it’s one of the reasons why he loves taking a picture and seeing that his glucose monitor is visible. “I'm thinking, okay, maybe a kid is seeing that and being like, ‘Oh, I have that too,’ and they don’t feel so alone,” he says.