The Way Nick Jonas' Diabetes Management Has Evolved Over Two Decades

This year, the number 20 holds particular meaning for renowned artist 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.

“The alignment is remarkable,” 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 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 great and tough moments living with diabetes. The difficulties of managing his condition have been the lows, while raising awareness and engaging others through his role and through his non-profit have brought him joy.

“In summary, I’m really thankful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to interact with all these wonderful people from all corners of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really significant feeling to feel like you’re a little less alone in it,” he added.

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 surprised his audience by sharing an inspiring message of hope, along with a mention to his A1C.

“My A1C, which is a collection of numbers over a three-month period, was the best it’s ever been, actually, most recently,” he revealed.

The show was attended by members of a global community — a network of more than 30,000 people worldwide who share their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of resilience, perseverance, and positivity.

“It was really meaningful 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 reflective 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 tune he wrote at the start of 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 impact it still has to this day with the audience,” he said.

While the song has taken on a new significance for him as an adult, he said it is still relevant.

“Now I [have] this great, big community that I belong to that has lifted me up in so many various moments. I think my outlook is perhaps a lot more optimistic now. It is possible to live a big, busy life while living with this disease and mindset and perspective and all that is an essential piece to powering through.”

Progress in Type 1 Diabetes

Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five daily shots a day and glucose checks 10 or more times daily. This was a constant cycle of injections, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a board certified endocrinologist.

“Delivery devices superseded 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 combined ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that alleviate some of the cognitive load people with type 1 bear 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 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 managing diabetes and delaying or modifying the disease itself are in development.

“The first immunotherapy capable of postponing type 1’s onset was authorized, and research into preserving or even replacing the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real momentum. In labs around the world, scientists are growing stem-cell–derived pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to protect them from the body's defenses,” said the specialist.

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

Nevertheless, while a family physician agrees that additional innovations will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an demanding undertaking — physically, mentally, and emotionally.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more attention to talking about and helping with the challenges and the requirements of living with and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.

Jonas Turns to Personal Wellness to Manage His Diabetes

In addition to medication and technology, Jonas discussed some strategies he relies 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 while managing 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 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 difficult to do at times, he said he learned to apply this soon after his diagnosis.

Recently, he has focused on taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying hydrated.

“It’s a basic 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 benefits,” said Jonas. “I didn’t put as much emphasis 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 bodily, mental, and emotional 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 inside 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 self-work,” Jonas said.

Above all, he urges everyone living with type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.

“There will be positive days, there will be challenging days, but you can climb this mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really motivate anybody that’s going through difficult times,” he concluded.