By Alan Braverman

Aida Turturro is known to millions as Janice Soprano from the HBO series, The Sopranos. What people don't know is that she has struggled with diabetes for a number of years. Now she is sharing her personal story and speaking out to encourage those who have been diagnosed with or are at-risk for diabetes to get in control of the condition to avoid life-threatening complications.

Aida’s diagnosis could not have come at a more difficult time. It was 2001 and her father had recently died. Her mother was sick. Aida knew diabetes ran in her family, but still, she was surprised when she learned, after a routine examination, that she had diabetes. Her reaction? “I just didn’t pay attention to it. There was too much going on.”

It took two years until Aida actually paid attention to her diabetes. She was lucky enough to have a health care provider who sat her down and explained, in no uncertain terms, what would happen to Aida if she continued to ignore her condition.

“In hindsight, I realize how crazy I was being,” she explained. “I was being snappy. I was tired all the time. I had these emotional highs and lows, and it seemed like I was always crying.”

Aida learned that these emotional ups and downs were just one small part of not managing diabetes. If she continued to neglect it, diabetes would seriously affect her life and health. So, for about three years now, Aida has been taking insulin to help manage her diabetes. She takes her insulin four times every day and checks her blood glucose levels at least as many times, if not more.

“At first I would check my blood all the time,” Aida reports. “But now that I got the hang of it and know how my body reacts, I’m down to about four times each day.”

While the insulin she takes plays a leading role in keeping her diabetes under control, Aida is also careful about what she eats and how she exercises. Living in the New York City area and shooting The Sopranos in New Jersey , in addition to all her traveling and other commitments, Aida admits that it’s sometimes hard to stick with a strict regimen of diet and physical activity.

Nonetheless, she usually has a cup of oatmeal or a protein shake for breakfast. On the weekends, she’ll sometimes have eggs. Lunch usually consists of vegetables and a protein. Dinner is similarly healthy.

“The trick, for me, is to eat a little bit throughout the day, so I don’t get too hungry and end up doing something I’ll later regret. If I’m on the set, I’ll make sure to ask catering not to put out tempting foods I need to avoid.”

In terms of physical activity, Aida makes sure to get moving “almost daily.” Working with a trainer who supervises her overall physical activity plan, she goes bike riding, hiking, does yoga and “as much aerobic exercise as possible.”

But, she says, physical activity doesn’t have to be an expensive proposition. Aida advises the people she talks to about diabetes to just walk. “You don’t need a trainer. All you need is a pair of sneakers and maybe a pedometer.” The important thing to remember, she advises, is not to get discouraged.

Aida’s been talking to people all around the country on a tour sponsored by sanofi-aventis (makers of Lantus). So far, she’s been to Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago , Boston , Philadelphia and Atlanta . The concept behind the tour is to communicate to people who have diabetes how serious it is and the importance of taking care of it as soon as you are diagnosed.

“I’m amazed at what I’ve seen,” Aida reports. “Some people ‘just get it’ and jump right in and start managing their diabetes. Then there are people who are more like I was: in denial.”

The response she’s been getting tells Aida she’s doing a good thing by talking about diabetes. As diabetes becomes much more prevalent in America , she’s finding more and more people who want to learn about the right way to manage diabetes.

“I’m lucky enough to be on a show that allows me to speak to people and have them listen,” she says. “I’m no doctor, but that doesn’t make what I have to say any less important.”

Aida admits that she has good days and bad days. Some days she feels that her weight and glucose are under control. Other days aren’t as positive. After all, diabetes is hard work to manage. Nonetheless, she is eternally upbeat about bringing her message to the masses.

“I wish we could get everyone on board, like an AA meeting,” Aida shared. “Kids, especially, need to know the importance of eating right and living a healthy lifestyle.”

Aida Turturro has appeared on stage and screen as many different characters, but no doubt her most famous role to date is that of Tony Soprano’s sister, Janice, on The Sopranos. The daughter of a well-known painter and sculptor (her dad) and a television film editor (her mom), Aida was bitten by the acting bug at a young age. Fresh out of college in 1984, Aida nabbed her first film, True Love, opposite Anabella Sciorra. While she worked her day job organizing and cleaning houses, she landed parts on Broadway (including a 1992 revival of A Streetcar Named Desire starring Alec Baldwin and Jessica Lang) and in movies ranging from What About Bob? (1991) to Woody Allen’s Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993). Other film credits include Martin Scorsese's Bringing Out the Dead, John Turturro's Romance and Cigarettes and Illuminata, and  Allen's Celebrity. When The Sopranos is not in production, she continues to hone her craft by appearing on stage and in independent films.

On her tour, Aida is touching on several key points:

• Acknowledging the severity of diabetes. It can harm you if left uncontrolled.
• Getting educated about diabetes. Being knowledgeable will control the fear of being diagnosed.
• Staying in control of blood glucose levels through diet, physical activity and medication.
• Checking glucose AND A1C levels regularly. Glucose tests let you know your levels at that moment, while A1C is an indication of glucose levels over time.
• Speaking with your health care providers about effective ways to manage blood glucose levels.
• Establishing a support system to help you through difficult times. Friends and relatives can be crucial to helping you manage diabetes.