How The Singer's Diabetes Management Has Evolved Over the Past 20 Years

This year, the number 20 holds special significance for iconic singer Nick Jonas.

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

“The alignment is remarkable,” 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 blessed 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 two decades, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments living with diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the low points, while raising awareness and engaging others through his role and through his non-profit have been a source of happiness.

“Overall, I’m really thankful 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 navigating their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really significant feeling to feel like you’re a little less alone in it,” said Jonas.

Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout 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 inspiring 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 most favorable it’s ever been, actually, 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 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 introspective and to explore sort of what life looks like for me as a now thirty-three-year-old person managing this condition,” he said.

Jonas offered the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody he wrote at the start of 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 effect it still has to this day with the audience,” 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 vast, supportive community that I belong to that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my outlook is possibly a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a full, active life while managing this disease and mindset and perspective and all that is an important piece to persevering.”

Advancements 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 each day. This was a constant cycle of needles, guesswork, and vigilance, as stated by a licensed endocrinologist.

“Insulin pumps superseded multiple daily insulin injections.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

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

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

In addition to technology, new treatments aimed at controlling the condition and delaying or altering the disease itself are being researched.

“The first immunotherapy capable of delaying type 1’s onset was approved, and research into protecting or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real momentum. In labs around the world, scientists are growing lab-grown pancreatic beta cells and testing ways to protect them from immune attack,” said the specialist.

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

“Further progress will definitely continue to develop. We’re no longer just enhancing devices; we’re getting closer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.

However, while another medical professional agrees that further advancements will continue to appear, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding 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 having and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he commented.

The Singer Employs Self-Care to Control His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed 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 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 difficult to do at times, he said he learned to apply this soon after his diagnosis.

Lately, he has prioritized 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 exactly why, but I just find that hydrating has a lot of health benefits,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much focus 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 grounds me and even when it’s cold out, getting out in the open air is really important when a lot of my day, too, is spent inside for hours at a concert hall or on a movie location or something,” he said.

He relies on his therapist frequently, too.

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

Above all, he urges 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 mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose experiences will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.