- Lead singer Nick Jonas has managed type 1 diabetes for 20 years.
- The band's “JONAS20: Greetings from Your Hometown Tour” celebrates its 20th anniversary concurrent with Nick Jonas’s two-decade experience with diabetes.
- Nick Jonas discusses how these two anniversaries have influenced his life and how he uses his music to promote understanding for type 1 diabetes.
In 2025, the number 20 carries particular meaning for iconic singer Nick Jonas.
As the Jonas Brothers celebrate their 20th year together, 2025 simultaneously signifies 20 years since their lead singer's type 1 diabetes diagnosis.
“The alignment is remarkable,” the singer stated. “It's been an incredible ride 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 most amazing fans.”
Parallel to the band’s experience over the last two decades, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments managing diabetes. The struggles of controlling his disease have been the lows, while advocating and engaging others through his role and through his non-profit have been a source of happiness.
“In summary, I’m really thankful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to interact with all these amazing people from all regions of the world who are navigating their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really significant feeling to feel like you’re a little less isolated in it,” said Jonas.
Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to His Audience
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 inspiring message of hope, accompanied by a shout-out to his A1C.
“My A1C, which is a collection of numbers over a three-month period, was the best it’s ever been, in fact, most recently,” he revealed.
The show was visited by members of a global community — a collective of more than 30,000 people globally who share their experiences with diabetes to help promote a message of strength, determination, and positivity.
“It was really special for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ stage as a place to speak about something that’s clearly very personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s natural to get introspective and to tap into 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 tune 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 taken on a new significance for him as an adult, he said it is still pertinent.
“Now I [have] this great, big community that I belong to that has lifted me up in so many different moments. I think my perspective is possibly a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a full, active life while living with this disease and mindset and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to persevering.”
Progress 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 never-ending cycle of needles, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.
“Insulin pumps replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘communicate’ with the glucose monitors,” the expert explained.
“Algorithms began modifying insulin on their own, creating combined ‘automated delivery’ systems that lift some of the cognitive load people with type 1 carry every day.”
Jonas is impressed with how far technology has improved 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 amazing thing,” he said.
In addition to technology, new therapies aimed at controlling the condition and delaying or modifying the disease itself are being researched.
“The first immune-therapy capable of delaying type 1’s start was authorized, and research into protecting or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells acquired real momentum. In labs around the world, scientists are growing lab-grown pancreatic beta cells and testing ways to shield them from the body's defenses,” the doctor continued.
“Smart insulin” is also being engineered to activate only when glucose levels rises, offering a future where insulin works as intuitively as the body once did.
“More advancements will absolutely continue to emerge. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting nearer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.
However, while a family physician agrees that further advancements will continue to develop, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding undertaking — physically, cognitively, and psychologically.
“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to talking about and addressing the burdens and the requirements of having and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he commented.
Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Control His Diabetes
In addition to medication and technology, Jonas shared some strategies he relies on to handle his diabetes.
First, 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 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 hard to do at times, he said he learned to apply this soon after his diagnosis.
Lately, he has focused on taking vitamins, caring for 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 drinking water 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 helpful.”
He also takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, and psychological 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 relies on his therapist regularly, too.
“I think it’s really vital to do that personal development,” 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 tough days, but you can scale this challenge, and there’s some incredible people out there whose experiences will really inspire anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.
