In a video shared on social media, the singer said that her daughters have the most severe form of a rare muscle-wasting disease that can be fatal if left untreated.
Jesy gave birth to her twins, Ocean Jade and Story Monroe, prematurely at 31 weeks.
In her emotional video, she said the twins had now been diagnosed with a condition called SMA Type 1, or Werdnig-Hoffmann disease, the most severe form of Spinal Muscular Atrophy.
Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson in tears as she shares twin babies’ diagnosis
The condition causes dramatic muscle weakness as well as severe breathing and swallowing issues.
A tearful Jesy said: “If it’s not treated in time, your baby’s life expectancy will not make it past the age of two.”
The singer said it was her mother, Janice, who first had concerns about the twins after they were born.
Jesy said: “A few months ago, my mum noticed that the girls were not showing as much movement in their legs as they should be.
“It wasn’t really a concern to me at the time because from the minute I left NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), I was told ‘your babies are premature, so do not compare your babies to other babies. They won’t reach the same milestones, take them as they are and they will get where they need to be when they do’.”
The artist said health visitors described the babies as “great and healthy”. She added that when the couple raised concerns about their babies’ feeding, their GPs advised them not to worry.
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However, after a “gruelling” three to four months of endless appointments, the girls were finally diagnosed with the condition.
Jesy’s partner, Zion, also shared a message about the diagnosis, writing that they were “smiling through the challenges”.
Addressing their babies, he added: “Daddy loves you so much.”
