How The Singer's Management of Diabetes Has Transformed During Two Decades

In 2025, the number 20 carries special significance for iconic singer Nick Jonas.

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

“It’s crazy how it lined up,” the singer stated. “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 most amazing 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 lows, while advocating and connecting with others through his role and through his non-profit have been a source of happiness.

“Overall, I’m really grateful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to connect with all these wonderful people from all regions of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes path, and it’s a really significant feeling to feel like you’re a little less isolated in it,” said Jonas.

The Singer's A1C Announcement to Fans

To show appreciation to supporters, 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 shout-out to his A1C.

“My A1C, which is a average of numbers over a 90-day 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 globally who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help promote a message of resilience, perseverance, and positivity.

“It was really meaningful for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ platform as a place to speak about something that’s obviously very personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s fitting to get reflective and to tap into kind of what life looks like for me as a now 33-year-old person living with this disease,” he said.

Jonas dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody he wrote early in his career and diabetes journey, to those living with 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 impact it still has to this day with the audience,” he said.

While the song has taken on a new significance for him as an adult, he said it is still relevant.

“Now I [have] this great, big community that I belong to that has supported me in so many various moments. I think my outlook is perhaps a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a big, busy life while managing this disease and mindset and perspective and all that is an important piece to persevering.”

Advancements in Type 1 Diabetes

In the past, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five daily shots a day and finger sticks 10 or more times each day. This was a constant cycle of injections, guesswork, and care, as stated by a licensed endocrinologist.

“Insulin pumps replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘communicate’ with the glucose monitors,” the doctor noted.

“Algorithms began adjusting insulin automatically, creating combined ‘automated delivery’ systems that alleviate some of the mental burden people with type 1 carry every day.”

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

“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 who I’m traveling away from is just an incredible thing,” he said.

Alongside technology, new treatments aimed at managing diabetes and delaying or altering the disease itself are being researched.

“The first immune-therapy capable of delaying type 1’s onset was approved, and research into preserving or even replacing the body’s insulin-producing cells acquired real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are growing lab-grown pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to shield them from immune attack,” the doctor continued.

“Smart insulin” is also being engineered to become active only when glucose levels rises, offering a future where insulin works as intuitively as the body once did.

“More advancements will definitely continue to emerge. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting nearer to changing the disease itself,” the expert concluded.

However, while a family physician concurs that additional innovations will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive undertaking — in terms of health, cognitively, and emotionally.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to discussing and helping with the burdens and the demands of living with and managing T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he commented.

Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Control His Diabetes

In addition to medication and technology, Jonas discussed 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 ideal 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 take a deep breath, reset, and know that it’s going to be OK on the other side is really crucial,” he said.

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

Recently, he has prioritized taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying 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 advantages,” said Jonas. “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 takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, and emotional health.

“It really grounds 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 inside 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 vital to do that self-work,” Jonas said.

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

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