How The Singer's Diabetes Management Has Changed 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 as a band, 2025 also marks 20 years since their lead singer's type 1 diabetes discovery.

“The alignment is remarkable,” the singer stated. “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 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 managing diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the lows, while advocating and engaging others as a spokesperson 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 amazing people from all regions of the world who are navigating their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really big thing to feel like you’re a little less alone in it,” said Jonas.

Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to His Audience

To thank his fans, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he took to the stage 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 90-day period, was the best it’s ever been, in fact, most recently,” he revealed.

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

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

Jonas dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody he wrote at the start of his career and diabetes experience, 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 fan base,” he said.

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

“Now I [have] this great, big community that I am part of that has supported me in so many different moments. I think my perspective is possibly 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 Diabetes Management

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five daily shots a day and glucose checks 10 or more times daily. This was a constant cycle of injections, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.

“Insulin pumps superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the sensors,” the doctor noted.

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

Jonas is impressed with how far technology has improved 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 who I’m traveling away from is just an incredible thing,” he said.

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

“The first immunotherapy capable of delaying type 1’s start was approved, and research into protecting or even replacing the body’s insulin-producing cells gained 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.

“Responsive insulin” is also being developed to become active only when glucose levels 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 enhancing devices; we’re getting nearer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.

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

“I sincerely hope that we’ll see more and more attention to discussing and helping with the challenges and the requirements of having and managing T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.

Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed some approaches he leans on to manage his diabetes.

First, 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 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, 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 soon after his diagnosis.

Recently, he has focused on taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying 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 advantages,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much emphasis on it when I was younger as I do now, and it’s been really helpful.”

He also takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his physical, 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 concert hall or on a film set or something,” he said.

He leans on his therapist regularly, too.

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

Above all, he urges everyone managing type 1 diabetes to take part in 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 stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.