- Lead singer Nick Jonas has been living with 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 both milestones have impacted his life and how he leverages his music to raise awareness for type 1 diabetes.
This year, 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 diagnosis.
“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 most amazing fans.”
Alongside the band’s experience over the last 20 years, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments managing diabetes. The struggles of managing his condition have been the lows, while advocating and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have brought him joy.
“In summary, I’m really thankful to have been able to be transparent about [type 1] and to connect with all these wonderful 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 alone in it,” he added.
Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to Fans
To thank his fans, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he stepped onto the platform during a Jonas Brothers concert and surprised his audience by sharing an uplifting 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, in fact, most recently,” he revealed.
The show was attended by members of a global community — a network of more than 30,000 people globally who share their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of resilience, determination, 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 clearly very personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s natural 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 dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody 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 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 great, big community that I am part of that has supported me in so many different moments. I think my outlook is perhaps a lot more positive now. It is feasible to live a big, busy life while living with 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 involved more than five insulin injections a day and glucose checks 10 or more times daily. This was a constant cycle of needles, guesswork, 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 ‘talk’ with the glucose monitors,” the expert explained.
“Automated systems began adjusting insulin automatically, creating combined ‘automated delivery’ systems that alleviate 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 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 incredible thing,” he said.
Alongside technology, new treatments aimed at managing diabetes and delaying or altering the disease itself are in development.
“The first immunotherapy capable of postponing type 1’s start was authorized, and research into preserving 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 immune attack,” the doctor continued.
“Responsive insulin” is also being engineered to activate only when glucose levels increase, promising a future where insulin works as naturally 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 agrees that additional innovations will continue to appear, he notes that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding task — physically, 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 controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.
Jonas Turns to Personal Wellness to Control His Diabetes
In addition to medication and technology, Jonas discussed some approaches he leans on to handle his diabetes.
To begin, he said he learned to take pressure off 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 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 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 prioritized taking vitamins, looking after his skin, and staying hydrated.
“It’s a basic 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,” 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 walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his physical, cognitive, and emotional 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 inside for hours at a venue or on a film set or something,” he said.
He leans on his therapist frequently, too.
“I think it’s really vital to do that self-work,” Jonas said.
Most of all, he encourages everyone living with type 1 diabetes to engage with 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 motivate anybody that’s going through tough moments,” he concluded.
