How Nick Jonas' Management of Diabetes Has Transformed Over the Past 20 Years

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

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

“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 ride of a lifetime, and we’ve been so fortunate 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 managing diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the low points, while advocating and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his non-profit have brought him joy.

“In summary, I’m really grateful to have been able to be transparent about [type 1] and to connect with all these amazing people from all corners 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 isolated in it,” said Jonas.

The Singer's A1C Announcement to Fans

To thank his fans, 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 shout-out 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 collective of over 30,000 people globally who share their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of strength, perseverance, and optimism.

“It was really special for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ platform as a place to speak about something that’s clearly 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 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 affected by 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 fan base,” 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 great, big community that I am part of that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my outlook 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 persevering.”

Progress in Type 1 Diabetes

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

“Insulin pumps replaced 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 hybrid ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that alleviate some of the mental burden people with type 1 bear every day.”

Jonas is impressed with how far technology has improved since he was first diagnosed.

“The fact that I can receive instant data 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 altering the disease itself are in development.

“The first immune-therapy capable of postponing type 1’s onset was authorized, and research into protecting 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 testing ways to protect them from the body's defenses,” the doctor continued.

“Smart insulin” is also being developed to activate only when blood sugar rises, 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 improving tools; we’re getting nearer to changing the disease itself,” the expert concluded.

However, while a family physician concurs 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 psychologically.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to discussing and helping with the challenges and the demands of having and managing T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he told.

The Singer Employs Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes

In addition to medication and technology, Jonas discussed some strategies he leans 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 living with this disease and even if you’re super on top of your diabetes management, there are just things that are a little out of your control 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.

Lately, he has prioritized taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying 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 focus on it earlier in my life as I do now, and it’s been really beneficial.”

He also walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his physical, mental, and psychological health.

“It really centers 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 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.

Most of all, he encourages 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 scale this challenge, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.