- Lead singer Nick Jonas has managed type 1 diabetes for 20 years.
- The group's “Anniversary Tour” marks its 20th anniversary alongside Nick Jonas’s 20-year journey with diabetes.
- Nick Jonas shares how both milestones have impacted his life and how he uses his music to promote understanding for type 1 diabetes.
In 2025, the number 20 holds special significance for iconic singer Nick Jonas.
While the band commemorates their 20th year as a band, 2025 also marks 20 years since their frontman's type 1 diabetes discovery.
“It’s crazy how it lined up,” the singer stated. “It's been an incredible ride 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 world’s greatest fans.”
Parallel to the band’s experience over the last 20 years, he said he has had great and tough moments living with diabetes. The difficulties of controlling his disease have been the low points, while raising awareness and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have been a source of happiness.
“In summary, I’m really grateful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to interact 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,” 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 surprised his audience by sharing an inspiring message of hope, accompanied by a shout-out 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,” he revealed.
The show was attended by members of a worldwide group — a collective of over 30,000 people worldwide who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help promote a message of resilience, determination, and positivity.
“It was really meaningful for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ stage 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 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 offered the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a tune he wrote early in his career and diabetes journey, 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 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 taken on a new meaning for him as an adult, he said it is still pertinent.
“Now I [have] this vast, supportive community that I am part of that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my outlook is possibly a lot more positive now. It is feasible to live a full, active life while managing this disease and outlook and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to persevering.”
Advancements in Diabetes Management
In the past, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five insulin injections a day and finger sticks 10 or more times daily. This was a constant cycle of injections, estimation, and vigilance, according to a licensed endocrinologist.
“Insulin pumps superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and more advanced, and eventually learned to ‘communicate’ with the sensors,” the expert explained.
“Algorithms began adjusting insulin automatically, creating hybrid ‘automated delivery’ systems that lift some of the mental burden people with type 1 bear 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 amazing thing,” he said.
In addition to technology, new treatments aimed at controlling the condition and slowing or altering the disease itself are being researched.
“The first immune-therapy capable of delaying type 1’s start was approved, and research into preserving or even replacing 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 protect them from the body's defenses,” the doctor continued.
“Smart insulin” is also being developed to activate 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 improving tools; we’re getting closer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.
Nevertheless, while another medical professional agrees that additional innovations will continue to appear, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding undertaking — in terms of health, cognitively, and emotionally.
“I sincerely hope that we’ll see more and more focus to talking about and addressing the challenges and the demands of having and managing T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.
The Singer Employs Personal Wellness to Manage His Diabetes
Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed some approaches he relies on to manage his diabetes.
To begin, he said he learned to be less hard on himself.
“You’re never going to have the ideal 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.
Lately, he has focused on taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying 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,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much focus 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, cognitive, and psychological 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 indoors 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.
Most of all, he urges everyone living with type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.
“There will be good 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 difficult times,” said Jonas.
