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This year, the number 20 carries special significance for renowned artist Nick Jonas.

While the band commemorates their 20th year together, 2025 simultaneously signifies 20 years since their lead singer's type 1 diabetes diagnosis.

“The alignment is remarkable,” the singer stated. “It's been an incredible ride in both… regarding the band, 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 20 years, he said he has had wonderful and challenging moments living with diabetes. The difficulties of managing his condition have been the low points, while advocating and engaging others through his role and through his non-profit have brought him joy.

“Overall, 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 navigating their own diabetes path, and it’s a really big thing to feel like you’re a little less alone in it,” said Jonas.

Nick Jonas’ A1C Shoutout to Fans

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, 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 visited 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 strength, determination, and positivity.

“It was really meaningful for me to get to use the Jonas Brothers’ stage as a place to speak about something that’s clearly very important to me and on World Diabetes Day, I think it’s fitting to get reflective and to explore kind 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 at the start of his career and diabetes experience, to those living with 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 challenges 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 meaning 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 possibly a lot more positive now. It is possible to live a full, active life while living with this disease and outlook and viewpoint and all that is an important piece to powering through.”

Advancements in Diabetes Management

In the past, life with type 1 diabetes involved more than five daily shots a day and glucose checks 10 or more times each day. This was a never-ending cycle of injections, estimation, and vigilance, as stated by a licensed endocrinologist.

“Insulin pumps replaced multiple daily insulin injections. With time, insulin pumps became less bulky and smarter, and eventually learned to ‘talk’ with the sensors,” the doctor noted.

“Automated systems began modifying insulin automatically, creating combined ‘artificial pancreas’ systems that lift 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 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 altering the disease itself are being researched.

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

“Responsive insulin” is also being developed to become active only when blood sugar increase, offering 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 changing the disease itself,” the physician stated.

However, while another medical professional agrees that additional innovations will continue to appear, he points out that managing type 1 diabetes remains an intensive task — in terms of health, mentally, and emotionally.

“I sincerely hope that we’ll see more and more attention to discussing and addressing the burdens and the requirements of having and controlling T1D. We need far more of that, too,” he told.

The Singer Employs Personal Wellness to Manage His Diabetes

Beyond medication and technology, Jonas shared some approaches he leans on to manage his diabetes.

First, he said he learned to be less hard on himself.

“You’re never going to have the perfect 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.

Lately, he has focused on 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 exactly why, but I just find that drinking water has a lot of health benefits,” said Jonas. “I didn’t put as much focus on it when I was younger as I do now, and it’s been really helpful.”

He also takes walks daily for 30 minutes or longer for his bodily, mental, 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 inside for hours at a venue or on a movie location or something,” he said.

He relies on his therapist regularly, too.

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

Most of all, he encourages everyone managing type 1 diabetes to engage with the diabetes community.

“There will be good days, there will be challenging days, but you can climb this mountain, and there’s some remarkable people out there whose experiences will really inspire anybody that’s going through tough moments,” said Jonas.