- Frontman Nick Jonas has been living with type 1 diabetes for two decades.
- The group's “Anniversary Tour” marks its 20th anniversary alongside Nick Jonas’s 20-year journey with diabetes.
- Nick Jonas shares how these two anniversaries have influenced his life and how he leverages his music to promote understanding for type 1 diabetes.
In 2025, the number 20 carries special significance for iconic singer Nick Jonas.
As the Jonas Brothers celebrate 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 an incredible ride 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 great and tough moments managing diabetes. The difficulties of managing his condition have been the lows, while advocating and connecting with others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have been a source of happiness.
“Overall, I’m really grateful to have been able to be open about [type 1] and to connect with all these wonderful 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 His Audience
To show appreciation to supporters, on World Diabetes Day (November 14), he took to the stage during a Jonas Brothers concert and delighted his audience by sharing an uplifting message of hope, along with 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 attended by members of a global community — a collective of more than 30,000 people worldwide who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help spread a message of strength, perseverance, and optimism.
“It was really special for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ stage as a place to speak about something that’s obviously very important 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 33-year-old person managing this condition,” he said.
Jonas dedicated the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a melody he wrote early in 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 challenges 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 assumed a new meaning 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 perspective is perhaps 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 essential piece to persevering.”
Advancements in Type 1 Diabetes
Not long ago, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five insulin injections a day and finger sticks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of injections, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a licensed endocrinologist.
“Delivery devices superseded multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became lighter and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘communicate’ with the glucose monitors,” the expert explained.
“Automated systems began adjusting insulin on their own, creating hybrid ‘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 advanced since he was first diagnosed.
“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.
Alongside technology, new therapies aimed at managing diabetes and slowing or altering the disease itself are in development.
“The first immunotherapy capable of postponing type 1’s onset was authorized, and research into preserving or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real momentum. In labs around the world, scientists are cultivating stem-cell–derived pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to shield them from the body's defenses,” the doctor continued.
“Smart insulin” is also being developed to activate only when blood sugar increase, promising a future where insulin works as intuitively as the body once did.
“Further progress will absolutely continue to emerge. We’re no longer just enhancing devices; we’re getting closer to transforming the disease itself,” the physician stated.
Nevertheless, while a family physician concurs that further advancements will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive undertaking — physically, mentally, and emotionally.
“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more attention to talking about and addressing the burdens and the requirements of having and managing T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he commented.
The Singer Employs Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes
Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed some approaches he relies on to handle his diabetes.
To begin, he said he learned to take pressure off himself.
“You’re never going to have the perfect 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 take a deep breath, reset, 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.
Lately, he has prioritized 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 benefits,” he noted. “I didn’t put as much emphasis 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 physical, cognitive, and psychological 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 indoors for hours at a venue or on a film set or something,” he said.
He relies on his therapist frequently, too.
“I think it’s really important to do that self-work,” Jonas said.
Above all, he urges everyone managing type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.
“There will be positive days, there will be challenging days, but you can scale this mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really inspire anybody that’s going through tough moments,” he concluded.
