In September Johnson represented Virginia in the Miss America 1999 pageant , becoming the second woman representing that state to win the Miss America title . She sang " That 's Life " in the talent competition . In 1997 she started wearing an insulin pump on her hip to control her illness , which she wore while competing at Miss Virginia and Miss America , the first Miss America contestant and winner to do so . Johnson became a spokesperson for the American Diabetes Association in the 1990s and had testified in legislative hearings in Washington , D.C. prior to winning the Miss Virginia title . In 2004 , her communication skills and journalism background led her to become the anchor of '' dLife '' , a weekly TV series about diabetes that aired on CNBC . Johnson has also written several books over her career : three cookbooks with Mr. Food , an independent cookbook titled , '' Nicole Johnson 's Diabetes Recipe Makeovers , '' an autobiography titled '' Living with Diabetes , '' and a book for young adults titled , '' Young Adult Type 1 Diabetes Realities . '' She continues to work as a diabetes advocate and patient care expert - professionally and in a volunteer capacity . Her consulting clients have included Novo Nordisk , Animas Corporation , AmMed Direct LLC and Eli Lilly and Company . On a volunteer basis , she has served in leadership roles within the JDRF and the American Diabetes Association . Her academic credentials have most recently led her to public health work at the University of South Florida where she is the Executive Director of a program she created called Bringing Science Home . In 2010 , Johnson founded Students With Diabetes ( SWD ) , at the University of South Florida , to serve the needs of the young adult population with diabetes
Miss America 1999
Miss America 1999
Nicole Johnson (Miss America)