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This year, the number 20 holds 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 lead singer's type 1 diabetes discovery.

“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 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 managing diabetes. The struggles of managing his condition have been the low points, while advocating and engaging others as a spokesperson and through his foundation have brought him joy.

“In summary, I’m really grateful to have been able to be transparent about [type 1] and to interact with all these wonderful people from all regions of the world who are experiencing their own diabetes path, and it’s a really significant feeling 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 surprised his audience by sharing an inspiring 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,” he revealed.

The show was visited by members of a worldwide group — a collective of over 30,000 people worldwide who discuss their experiences with diabetes to help promote a message of strength, perseverance, 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 obviously very personal to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s fitting 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 offered the song “A Little Bit Longer” — a tune he wrote early in 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 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 vast, supportive community that I am part of that has lifted me up in so many different moments. I think my outlook is perhaps a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a big, busy life while managing this disease and outlook and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to persevering.”

Progress 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 daily. This was a constant cycle of needles, guesswork, and care, as stated by a licensed 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.

“Algorithms began adjusting insulin on their own, creating combined ‘automated delivery’ systems that lift some of the mental burden people with type 1 bear every day.”

Jonas is impressed with how far technology has advanced since he was first diagnosed.

“The fact that I can receive instant data 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 incredible thing,” he said.

In addition to technology, new treatments aimed at controlling the condition and delaying or modifying the disease itself are in development.

“The first immune-therapy capable of postponing type 1’s start was authorized, and research into protecting or even substituting the body’s insulin-producing cells gained real traction. In labs around the world, scientists are growing lab-grown pancreatic beta cells and experimenting with ways to protect them from the body's defenses,” the doctor continued.

“Responsive insulin” is also being developed to become active only when glucose levels rises, promising a future where insulin works as intuitively as the body once did.

“Further progress will definitely continue to emerge. We’re no longer just improving tools; we’re getting closer to transforming the disease itself,” the expert concluded.

However, while another medical professional agrees that further advancements will continue to develop, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive task — physically, cognitively, and psychologically.

“I truly hope that we’ll see more and more focus to discussing and addressing the challenges and the demands of living with and controlling T1D. We need much more of that, too,” he commented.

Jonas Turns to Self-Care to Manage His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas discussed some strategies he leans 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, reset, 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 practice this early during his diagnosis.

Lately, he has prioritized taking vitamins, caring for his skin, and staying well-hydrated.

“It’s a simple 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,” 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 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 leans on his therapist regularly, too.

“I think it’s really important to do that self-work,” Jonas said.

Most of all, he urges everyone managing 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 mountain, and there’s some incredible people out there whose stories will really motivate anybody that’s going through tough moments,” he concluded.