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

In 2025, the number 20 carries particular meaning for iconic singer Nick Jonas.

While the band commemorates their 20th year together, 2025 also marks 20 years since their frontman's type 1 diabetes diagnosis.

“The alignment is remarkable,” Jonas remarked. “It's been an incredible ride in both… regarding the band, it’s been the ride of a lifetime, and we’ve been so blessed to be able to do this for 20 years now and to have the support of the most amazing fans.”

Alongside the band’s experience over the last two decades, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments living with diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease 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 interact 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 alone in it,” said Jonas.

The Singer's A1C Announcement to His Audience

To thank his fans, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he stepped onto the platform during a Jonas Brothers concert and delighted his audience by sharing an uplifting message of hope, accompanied by a mention to his A1C.

“My A1C, which is a average of numbers over a three-month period, was the most favorable it’s ever been, actually, most recently,” he revealed.

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

“It was really meaningful 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 tap into kind of what life looks like for me as a now thirty-three-year-old person living with this condition,” he said.

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

“It’s a really significant 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 fan base,” 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 perhaps a lot more optimistic now. It is feasible to live a big, busy life while living with this disease and mindset and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to persevering.”

Progress 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 never-ending cycle of injections, estimation, and care, according to a licensed endocrinologist.

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

“Automated systems began adjusting insulin on their own, creating hybrid ‘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 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.

In addition to technology, new therapies aimed at managing diabetes and delaying or modifying the disease itself are being researched.

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

“Smart insulin” is also being developed to activate only when blood sugar rises, 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 closer to changing the disease itself,” the physician stated.

However, while another medical professional agrees that additional innovations will continue to appear, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding undertaking — physically, cognitively, and emotionally.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to talking about and helping with the burdens and the requirements of having and controlling T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he told.

Jonas Turns to Personal Wellness to Control His Diabetes

In addition to medication and technology, Jonas shared some approaches he leans 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 living with this disease and even if you’re super on top of your diabetes management, there are just things that are a little out of your control 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 hard to do at times, he said he learned to practice this early during his diagnosis.

Lately, he has focused on taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying hydrated.

“It’s a simple thing, but the more water I drink, my glucose levels are better. 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 takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, cognitive, and psychological 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 leans on his therapist regularly, too.

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

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

“There will be positive days, there will be tough days, but you can climb this challenge, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through tough moments,” he concluded.