- Lead singer Nick Jonas has managed type 1 diabetes for 20 years.
- The band's “Anniversary Tour” marks its 20th anniversary alongside Nick Jonas’s 20-year journey with diabetes.
- Nick Jonas discusses how both milestones have influenced his life and how he leverages his music to promote understanding for type 1 diabetes.
This year, the number 20 carries 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.
“The alignment is remarkable,” the singer stated. “It's been an incredible ride in both… regarding the band, 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 20 years, he said he has had great and tough moments managing diabetes. The struggles of managing his condition have been the low points, while advocating and engaging others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have brought him joy.
“Overall, I’m really grateful to have been able to be transparent about [type 1] and to interact with all these amazing people from all corners of the world who are navigating their own diabetes path, and it’s a really big thing to feel like you’re a little less isolated in it,” said Jonas.
Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to His Audience
To show appreciation to supporters, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he took to the stage during a Jonas Brothers concert and delighted his audience by sharing an inspiring message of hope, accompanied by a mention to his A1C.
“My A1C, which is a collection of numbers over a three-month 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 globally who share their experiences with diabetes to help spread 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 kind 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 fan base,” 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 optimistic now. It is feasible to live a full, active life while living with this disease and outlook and viewpoint and all that is an essential piece to powering through.”
Progress in Diabetes Management
Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes meant more than five daily shots a day and glucose checks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of needles, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.
“Delivery devices replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the sensors,” the expert explained.
“Algorithms began adjusting insulin automatically, creating hybrid ‘automated delivery’ systems that alleviate some of the mental burden people with type 1 carry every day.”
Jonas is amazed 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 amazing thing,” he said.
In addition to technology, new therapies aimed at managing diabetes and slowing or modifying the disease itself are in development.
“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 testing ways to shield them from the body's defenses,” said the specialist.
“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.
“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.
Nevertheless, while another medical professional concurs that further advancements will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive undertaking — in terms of health, mentally, and psychologically.
“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to discussing and addressing the challenges and the requirements of having and managing T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he told.
The Singer Employs Personal Wellness to Control His Diabetes
Beyond medication and technology, Jonas shared some strategies he relies on to manage his diabetes.
To begin, he said he learned to take pressure off himself.
“You’re never going to have the perfect day living with this disease and even if you’re very diligent with your diabetes management, there are just things that are a little out of your control and being able to pause, 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 early during his diagnosis.
Lately, he has focused on taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying hydrated.
“It’s a simple thing, but the more water I drink, my glucose levels are more stable. I don’t know exactly why, but I just find that drinking water has a lot of health benefits,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much emphasis on it earlier in my life as I do now, and it’s been really helpful.”
He also walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, and emotional health.
“It really grounds 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 regularly, too.
“I think it’s really vital to do that self-work,” Jonas said.
Most of all, he urges everyone managing type 1 diabetes to take part in the diabetes community.
“There will be positive days, there will be tough days, but you can scale this challenge, and there’s some remarkable people out there whose experiences will really motivate anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.
