Semaglutide, a weight-loss drug sold under brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, is “highly effective” in reducing obese teenagers’ BMI, according to a new study. Dr Aaron Kelly, the co-director of America’s Center for Pediatric Obesity Medicine, found that weekly injections of the “skinny jab” combined with counselling meant 45 per cent of 134 adolescents were no longer clinically obese after 68 weeks, compared to 12 per cent of 67 children in a placebo group. In January, the American Academy of Pediatrics released new childhood obesity guidance that included more intensive treatment like medication and surgery. The warning label: Kelly himself has said that although semaglutide could be “transformative” it should be used with, not instead of, other lifestyle and anti-obesity measures. Not mentioned either is the “Ozempic rebound” – when the weight returns after someone stops taking the appetite-suppressing drug.
