The Way The Singer's Management of Diabetes Has Transformed During the Past 20 Years

In 2025, the number 20 carries special significance for renowned artist Nick Jonas.

While the band commemorates their 20th year together, 2025 simultaneously signifies 20 years since their frontman's type 1 diabetes discovery.

“The alignment is remarkable,” Jonas remarked. “It's been an incredible ride in both… in the Brothers sense, it’s been the adventure of a lifetime, and we’ve been so fortunate to be able to do this for 20 years now and to have the support of the world’s greatest fans.”

Parallel to the band’s experience over the last 20 years, he said he has had great and tough moments living with diabetes. The difficulties of managing his condition have been the low points, while advocating and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have been a source of happiness.

“In summary, I’m really thankful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to interact with all these wonderful people from all corners of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really big thing to feel like you’re a little less isolated in it,” said Jonas.

The Singer's A1C Announcement to His Audience

To show appreciation to supporters, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he took to the stage during a Jonas Brothers concert and surprised his audience by sharing an inspiring message of hope, accompanied by a shout-out to his A1C.

“My A1C, which is a collection of numbers over a three-month period, was the best it’s ever been, in fact, most recently,” said Jonas.

The show was visited by members of a worldwide group — a collective of over 30,000 people worldwide who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of strength, perseverance, and optimism.

“It was really special for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ platform as a place to speak about something that’s clearly very personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s natural to get introspective and to explore kind of what life looks like for me as a now thirty-three-year-old person managing this condition,” he said.

Jonas offered the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody he wrote early in his career and diabetes experience, to those affected by the disease.

“It’s a really important time for me to get to speak on stage like that and play a song that I wrote about these experiences when I was 14 and to see the impact it still has to this day with the audience,” he said.

While the song has assumed a new meaning for him as an adult, he said it is still relevant.

“Now I [have] this great, big community that I belong to that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my perspective is possibly a lot more optimistic now. It is feasible to live a big, busy life while managing this disease and outlook and viewpoint and all that is an essential piece to powering through.”

Progress in Type 1 Diabetes

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes meant more than five daily shots a day and finger sticks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of needles, estimation, and care, as stated by a licensed endocrinologist.

“Delivery devices replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the sensors,” the expert explained.

“Automated systems began modifying insulin automatically, creating combined ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that alleviate some of the mental burden people with type 1 bear every day.”

Jonas is impressed with how far technology has advanced since he was first diagnosed.

“The fact that I can receive real time readings of my glucose directly on my phone or smart watch or it can be [shared with] my wife or other family members when I am apart from is just an incredible thing,” he said.

In addition to technology, new treatments aimed at controlling the condition and slowing or altering the disease itself are being researched.

“The first immunotherapy capable of postponing type 1’s start was approved, and research into protecting or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells acquired real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are cultivating lab-grown pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to protect them from immune attack,” said the specialist.

“Responsive insulin” is also being developed to activate only when blood sugar increase, promising a future where insulin works as naturally as the body once did.

“More advancements will absolutely continue to develop. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting closer to changing the disease itself,” the physician stated.

Nevertheless, while another medical professional concurs that further advancements will continue to appear, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding task — physically, cognitively, and emotionally.

“I sincerely hope that we’ll see more and more attention to talking about and helping with the challenges and the requirements of living with and managing T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he commented.

Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes

In addition to medication and technology, Jonas shared some strategies he relies on to handle his diabetes.

First, he said he learned to be less hard on himself.

“You’re never going to have the perfect day while managing this disease and even if you’re super on top of your diabetes management, there are just things that are a little beyond your influence and being able to pause, recalibrate, and know that it’s going to be OK on the other side is really crucial,” he said.

While this is difficult to do at times, he said he learned to apply this early during his diagnosis.

Recently, he has prioritized taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying well-hydrated.

“It’s a basic thing, but the more water I drink, my glucose levels are more stable. I don’t know precisely why, but I just find that hydrating has a lot of health benefits,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much emphasis on it earlier in my life as I do now, and it’s been really helpful.”

He also walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, and psychological health.

“It really grounds me and even when it’s cold out, getting out in the open air is really important when a lot of my day, too, is spent inside for hours at a concert hall or on a film set or something,” he said.

He leans on his therapist frequently, too.

“I think it’s really important to do that personal development,” Jonas said.

Above all, he encourages everyone managing type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.

“There will be good days, there will be challenging days, but you can scale this mountain, and there’s some remarkable people out there whose experiences will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.