- Frontman Nick Jonas has managed type 1 diabetes for 20 years.
- The band's “JONAS20: Greetings from Your Hometown Tour” marks its 20th anniversary alongside 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.
In 2025, the number 20 holds special significance for renowned artist Nick Jonas.
While the band commemorates their 20th year together, 2025 simultaneously signifies 20 years since their frontman's type 1 diabetes discovery.
“The alignment is remarkable,” Jonas remarked. “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 world’s greatest fans.”
Alongside the band’s experience over the last two decades, he said he has had great and tough moments living with diabetes. The difficulties of controlling his disease 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 grateful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to connect with all these amazing people from all corners of the world who are navigating their own diabetes journey, and it’s a really big thing to feel like you’re a little less isolated in it,” he added.
Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to Fans
To show appreciation to supporters, 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 90-day period, was the most favorable it’s ever been, actually, most recently,” said Jonas.
The show was visited by members of a global community — a collective of over 30,000 people globally who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of strength, 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 dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a tune he wrote early in 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 meaning for him as an adult, he said it is still pertinent.
“Now I [have] this vast, supportive community that I belong to that has supported me in so many different moments. I think my outlook is perhaps a lot more optimistic now. It is possible to live a full, active life while managing this disease and mindset and viewpoint and all that is an essential piece to persevering.”
Advancements in Diabetes Management
In the past, life with type 1 diabetes meant more than five daily shots a day and finger sticks 10 or more times each day. This was a constant cycle of injections, guesswork, and care, according to a board certified endocrinologist.
“Insulin pumps replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the glucose monitors,” the expert explained.
“Automated systems began adjusting insulin automatically, creating hybrid ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that alleviate some of the cognitive load people with type 1 bear every day.”
Jonas is impressed with how far technology has advanced since he was first identified.
“The fact that I can receive real time readings of my glucose straight to 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.
Alongside technology, new treatments aimed at controlling the condition and delaying or modifying the disease itself are in development.
“The first immunotherapy capable of delaying type 1’s start was approved, and research into preserving or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are cultivating stem-cell–derived pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to protect them from immune attack,” the doctor continued.
“Responsive 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.
“More advancements will definitely continue to develop. We’re no longer just enhancing devices; we’re getting nearer to transforming the disease itself,” the physician stated.
However, while another medical professional agrees that further advancements will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive undertaking — physically, mentally, and psychologically.
“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more attention to discussing and helping with the challenges and the requirements of having and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he told.
Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Control His Diabetes
Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed some approaches he relies on to manage his diabetes.
First, 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 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 hard to do at times, he said he learned to practice this soon after his diagnosis.
Recently, 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 better. I don’t know precisely 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 beneficial.”
He also walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his physical, cognitive, and psychological 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 indoors for hours at a concert hall or on a movie location or something,” he said.
He relies on his therapist regularly, too.
“I think it’s really important to do that personal development,” Jonas said.
Above 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 climb this mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through tough moments,” he concluded.
