- Frontman Nick Jonas has managed type 1 diabetes for two decades.
- The group's “JONAS20: Greetings from Your Hometown Tour” marks its 20th anniversary concurrent with Nick Jonas’s two-decade experience with diabetes.
- Nick Jonas discusses how these two anniversaries have impacted his life and how he leverages his music to promote understanding for type 1 diabetes.
This year, the number 20 holds special significance for renowned artist Nick Jonas.
As the Jonas Brothers celebrate their 20th year together, 2025 also marks 20 years since their lead singer's type 1 diabetes discovery.
“The alignment is remarkable,” Jonas remarked. “It’s been a wild journey in both… regarding the band, 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 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 controlling his disease have been the lows, while raising awareness and connecting with 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 amazing people from all regions of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes path, and it’s a really significant feeling to feel like you’re a little less alone in it,” said Jonas.
The Singer's A1C Announcement to His Audience
To thank his fans, 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 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, actually, most recently,” he revealed.
The show was visited by members of a global community — a network of more than 30,000 people globally who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of resilience, determination, and optimism.
“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 at the start of 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 impact 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 relevant.
“Now I [have] this vast, supportive community that I am part of 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 managing this disease and mindset and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to powering through.”
Advancements in Type 1 Diabetes
In the past, life with type 1 diabetes meant more than five insulin injections a day and finger sticks 10 or more times daily. This was a never-ending cycle of injections, guesswork, and care, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.
“Delivery devices superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the sensors,” the doctor noted.
“Automated systems began adjusting insulin automatically, creating hybrid ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that lift some of the mental burden people with type 1 carry every day.”
Jonas is amazed with how far technology has advanced since he was first identified.
“The fact that I can receive instant data 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 therapies aimed at managing diabetes and slowing or modifying the disease itself are being researched.
“The first immunotherapy capable of postponing type 1’s start was approved, 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 experimenting with ways to shield them from immune attack,” said the specialist.
“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 emerge. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting nearer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.
Nevertheless, while another medical professional concurs that additional innovations will continue to appear, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding task — in terms of health, cognitively, and emotionally.
“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to discussing and helping with the challenges and the requirements of living with and managing T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he commented.
Jonas Turns to Personal Wellness to Manage His Diabetes
In addition to medication and technology, Jonas discussed some strategies 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 ideal day living with 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 pause, recalibrate, and know that it’s going to be OK on the other side is really crucial,” he said.
While this is difficult to do at times, he said he learned to practice this soon after his diagnosis.
Recently, he has focused on 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 precisely why, but I just find that hydrating has a lot of health advantages,” said Jonas. “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 takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, cognitive, 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 inside for hours at a venue or on a movie location or something,” he said.
He relies on his therapist frequently, too.
“I think it’s really important to do that personal development,” Jonas said.
Most of all, he urges everyone managing type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.
“There will be good days, there will be tough days, but you can scale this challenge, and there’s some remarkable people out there whose stories will really motivate anybody that’s going through tough moments,” said Jonas.
