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

In 2025, the number 20 holds particular meaning for renowned artist Nick Jonas.

As the Jonas Brothers celebrate their 20th year together, 2025 simultaneously signifies 20 years since their frontman's type 1 diabetes diagnosis.

“It’s crazy how it lined up,” Jonas remarked. “It’s been a wild journey in both… in the Brothers sense, it’s been the ride 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.”

Alongside the band’s experience over the last 20 years, he said he has had great and tough moments managing diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the low points, while raising awareness and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have brought him joy.

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

Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to His Audience

To thank his fans, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he stepped onto the platform during a Jonas Brothers concert and surprised his audience by sharing an uplifting message of hope, along with a mention 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,” he revealed.

The show was attended by members of a worldwide group — a collective of over 30,000 people worldwide who share their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of resilience, determination, 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 important 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 living with this disease,” he said.

Jonas offered the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a tune he wrote early in his career and diabetes journey, 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 challenges when I was 14 and to see the effect it still has to this day with the fan base,” he said.

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

“Now I [have] this great, big community that I belong to that has supported me in so many different moments. I think my perspective is possibly a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a full, active life while managing this disease and mindset and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to powering through.”

Advancements in Type 1 Diabetes

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes meant more than five insulin injections a day and glucose checks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of injections, estimation, and care, according to a board certified endocrinologist.

“Delivery devices replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and more advanced, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the glucose monitors,” the doctor noted.

“Algorithms began adjusting insulin on their own, creating hybrid ‘automated delivery’ systems that alleviate some of the cognitive load people with type 1 carry every day.”

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

“The fact that I can receive instant data of my glucose straight to 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 amazing thing,” he said.

Alongside technology, new therapies aimed at controlling the condition and slowing or altering the disease itself are being researched.

“The first immune-therapy capable of delaying type 1’s onset was authorized, and research into preserving or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are growing stem-cell–derived pancreatic beta cells and testing ways to protect them from immune attack,” the doctor continued.

“Smart insulin” is also being engineered to activate only when blood sugar increase, offering a future where insulin works as intuitively as the body once did.

“Further progress will absolutely continue to emerge. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting nearer to transforming the disease itself,” the physician stated.

Nevertheless, while a family physician agrees that further advancements will continue to develop, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive task — physically, mentally, and emotionally.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more attention to discussing and addressing the challenges and the demands of living with and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.

The Singer Employs Personal Wellness to Manage His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas shared some strategies he relies on to manage his diabetes.

First, he said he learned to take pressure off himself.

“You’re never going to have the perfect day living with 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 take a deep breath, reset, and know that it’s going to be OK on the other side is really important,” he said.

While this is hard to do at times, he said he learned to practice this soon after his diagnosis.

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

“It’s a simple thing, but the more water I drink, my glucose levels are more stable. I don’t know exactly why, but I just find that drinking water has a lot of health benefits,” said Jonas. “I didn’t put as much emphasis on it when I was younger as I do now, and it’s been really beneficial.”

He also walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his physical, cognitive, and emotional health.

“It really centers me and even when it’s cold out, getting out in the fresh air is really important when a lot of my day, too, is spent indoors for hours at a venue or on a movie location or something,” he said.

He relies on his therapist regularly, too.

“I think it’s really important to do that self-work,” Jonas said.

Most of all, he encourages everyone living with type 1 diabetes to take part in the diabetes community.

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