The Way The Singer's Diabetes Management Has Transformed During Two Decades

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

While the band commemorates their 20th year as a band, 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 a wild journey 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 20 years, he said he has had great and tough moments living with diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the lows, while raising awareness and engaging others as a spokesperson 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 interact with all these wonderful people from all regions of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes journey, 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 took to the stage during a Jonas Brothers concert and surprised 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 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 special 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 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 significant 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 assumed a new significance for him as an adult, he said it is still pertinent.

“Now I [have] this vast, supportive community that I belong to that has supported me in so many different moments. I think my outlook is possibly a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a big, busy life while living with this disease and outlook and perspective and all that is an essential piece to powering through.”

Advancements in Diabetes Management

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five insulin injections a day and finger sticks 10 or more times daily. This was a never-ending cycle of needles, guesswork, and care, according to a licensed endocrinologist.

“Delivery devices superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and more advanced, and eventually learned to ‘communicate’ with the glucose monitors,” the doctor noted.

“Algorithms began modifying insulin automatically, 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 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 incredible thing,” he said.

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

“The first immune-therapy capable of postponing type 1’s onset was authorized, and research into preserving or even replacing the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are cultivating stem-cell–derived pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to shield them from immune attack,” said the specialist.

“Responsive insulin” is also being developed to activate only when blood sugar rises, offering 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 physician stated.

Nevertheless, while another medical professional concurs that further advancements will continue to appear, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding task — in terms of health, mentally, and emotionally.

“I sincerely hope that we’ll see more and more attention to discussing and addressing the burdens and the requirements of living with and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he commented.

Jonas Turns to Personal Wellness to Control His Diabetes

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

To begin, he said he learned to be less hard on himself.

“You’re never going to have the perfect day while managing 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, reset, 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 early during his diagnosis.

Recently, he has focused on taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying well-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 hydrating has a lot of health advantages,” 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 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 indoors for hours at a concert hall or on a film set or something,” he said.

He leans on his therapist frequently, 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 take part in the diabetes community.

“There will be positive days, there will be challenging days, but you can climb this mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” said Jonas.