A study has found that a repurposed diabetes drug given once a week can reduce an obese child’s weight by almost a fifth.
Minors aged 12 to 17 who were given semaglutide – brand name Wegovy – lost an average of 14 percent of their body weight over 16 months.
This equates to 16 percent of their body mass index (BMI), a measure used to determine if someone is at an unhealthy weight. One in four lost at least a fifth of their BMI.
For comparison: A control group that received nutrition and exercise advice gained 2.4 percent more weight over the same period. Her BMI increased by 0.6 percent.
University of Minnesota researchers who conducted the study said the drug was the “most powerful anti-obesity drug for teenagers to date.”
Participants came to them “in tears”, so happy with the results, with one participant saying the drug made her “feel better in my own skin”.
The scientists hope their findings will ensure the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves the drug for use in children and opens up other avenues for weight loss.
Wegovy — which stimulates areas of the brain that help people feel full after eating — is currently only approved in the US for adults over 18.
In children, an injection for weight loss – liraglutide – can be used, but it must be given once a day.
Roughly one in five teenagers in the US is already considered obese, or 14.7 million people, increasing the risk of later diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
The above shows the percentage changes in body mass index (BMI) among participants. The dotted line, week 68, represents the end of the study. After that, participants in both groups began to regain the lost weight
Above you can see the participants broken down by the percentage of their body weight they lost. Overall, those who received the drug were more likely to lose weight
About one in five 12- to 15-year-olds in the US is already classified as obese, a number that has risen after the Covid pandemic caused many people to spend extended periods of time indoors
In the study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, scientists recruited 201 obese youth who weighed about 107 kg.
They had an average body mass index (BMI) of 37, clearly belonging to the obese category.
Participants were split into two groups, with two-thirds taking the weight-loss shot and the rest receiving counseling.
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Everyone from Hollywood stars to tech moguls are turning to the injectable drug to stay slim.
The drug with the active ingredient semaglutide is manufactured by the Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk and costs around 900 dollars a piece.
Injected in the stomach, thigh, or arm, it quickly suppresses a person’s appetite – allowing them to lose weight quickly and easily.
The drug has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, which allows it to be used as an off-label weight loss supplement.
It costs about $950 for a month’s treatment — and since it’s used off-label, it goes a long way to covering the price from insurance.
It has still gained popularity as famous nutritionists report an increase in requests from their wealthy clients.
Demand for the drug has reached such heights that type 2 diabetics who need it for treatment are facing shortages.
The FDA has placed the drug and the similar Wegovy, also made by Novo, on its drug shortage list.
After a year and four months, those in the drug group lost about 33 pounds (15 kg), or 14 percent of their body weight.
A third lost more than 20 percent.
For comparison: children who only received advice gained an average of 2.4 kg – this corresponds to 2.7 percent more body weight.
Only three percent achieved a weight loss of more than one-fifth.
The vaccine was found to be safe to use, but the most likely side effects were nausea and vomiting.
Participants were also monitored for three months after the study ended.
Both groups gained weight again during this time, but most strongly in the drug group, whose BMI rose by one percent.
dr Aaron Kelly, a University of Minnesota pediatric obesity expert who coauthored the study, said the results were “exciting.”
He told NBC News, “We’ve entered the phase where we’re seeing the kind of weight loss that makes teenagers come to tears.
“It’s the first time in their lives that they have their weight under control.”
Participants were recruited from sites in the US, Europe and Mexico, with the study running from October 2019 to March 2022.
Participant Emmalea Zummo, now 17 and from western Pennsylvania, said losing weight had been such a struggle that she was diagnosed with depression.
She weighed 113 kg (250 lbs) when she was recruited but lost 70 lbs (31.8 kg) and dropped to 170 lbs (77.1 kg) by the end of the study.
“I’ve tried diets. I tried sports. I play more sports than any other kid I know and nothing would work,” she told NBC. “My body would just get used to the extra exercise, adjust to the new diet, and the weight would come back.”
But she was “very pleased” with the results of the drug, adding, “I felt better in my own skin, which I’ve never felt before.”
Semaglutide was originally developed for diabetes patients. It works by helping the pancreas release the right amount of insulin when blood sugar levels are high.
But scientists found that it also had the side effect of reducing appetite, leading to weight loss. When people eat food, cells in the gut begin to release a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1).
This travels to the hypothalamus — an almond-shaped structure in the middle of the brain — and activates that region to induce feelings of fullness, or satiety.
The mechanism tells the body to stop eating, but of course it only lasts a few minutes. Semaglutide, on the other hand, keeps it active for days.
Semaglutide was approved in the US for weight loss for those over 18 in June last year, but has yet to get the green light for younger age groups.
The only currently approved injection for weight loss in children 12 and older is liraglutide, which goes by the brand name Saxenda.
But it needs to be administered once a day, unlike Wegovy, which requires a weekly injection.
Two medications in tablet form — orlistat and phentermine topiramate — are also approved for the age group, but must be taken up to three times a day.
Childhood obesity has been on the rise in the US for years, but picked up steam during the Covid pandemic when many were told to stay indoors.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 22 percent of children in the United States are obese.
For comparison: in 2020 the level was around 19 percent.
Obesity at a young age puts children at greater risk of health problems like high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, joint problems, and breathing problems like asthma and sleep apnea.