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

This year, the number 20 holds particular meaning for renowned artist Nick Jonas.

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

“The alignment is remarkable,” the singer stated. “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.”

Parallel to the band’s experience over the last 20 years, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments managing diabetes. The struggles of managing his condition have been the lows, while raising awareness and connecting with others through his role and through his non-profit have brought him joy.

“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 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 alone in it,” he added.

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 delighted his audience by sharing an uplifting message of hope, accompanied by a mention to his A1C.

“My A1C, which is a collection of numbers over a 90-day period, was the most favorable it’s ever been, in fact, most recently,” said Jonas.

The show was visited by members of a worldwide group — a network of over 30,000 people globally who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of resilience, determination, 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 personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s natural to get reflective and to explore sort of what life looks like for me as a now 33-year-old person managing this condition,” he said.

Jonas dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a tune he wrote at the start of his career and diabetes experience, 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 effect it still has to this day with the fan base,” 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 vast, supportive community that I belong to that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my perspective is perhaps a lot more positive now. It is feasible to live a full, active life while managing this disease and mindset and perspective and all that is an important piece to powering through.”

Progress in Type 1 Diabetes

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five daily shots a day and glucose checks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of injections, guesswork, and care, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.

“Insulin pumps superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and more advanced, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the glucose monitors,” the expert explained.

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

Jonas is amazed 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 amazing thing,” he said.

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

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

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

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

Nevertheless, while a family physician concurs that further advancements will continue to develop, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive undertaking — physically, cognitively, and psychologically.

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

The Singer Employs Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas shared some approaches he relies on to handle his diabetes.

To begin, he said he learned to take pressure off himself.

“You’re never going to have the ideal day living with this disease and even if you’re very diligent with your diabetes management, there are just things that are a little beyond your influence and being able to take a deep breath, recalibrate, 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 early during his diagnosis.

Recently, he has focused on taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying well-hydrated.

“It’s a basic thing, but the more water I drink, my glucose levels are better. I don’t know precisely 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 walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, 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 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 encourages everyone living with type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.

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