The Department of Health has asked the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) to assess the potential benefits of prescribing weight-loss injections to children aged 12 to 17 on the NHS. The drug in question, semaglutide, is sold under the brand name Wegovy and suppresses appetite. It is already available for adults on the NHS in England and for 12- to 17-year-olds in the US.
A clinical trial in Birmingham involving 180 obese children aged 12 to 17 found that the jabs helped reduce body mass index by 16% over 15 months. Currently, around 23% of 10-11-year-olds in England are obese, with a further 14.3% overweight. NHS England believes the drug could reduce referrals for invasive weight-loss surgery and improve health and school attainment.
However, Nice has paused its appraisal, awaiting further evidence from Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Wegovy. The watchdog had originally planned to publish guidance by early 2024 but now says the date is to be confirmed. Novo Nordisk stated it would provide evidence in due course.
The proposal has sparked controversy. Henry Dimbleby, the government's former food adviser, called plans to prescribe weight-loss drugs to millions "reckless", arguing Britain cannot "drug its way out of the problem" of obesity. Professor Keith Godfrey of the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre warned that giving such drugs to children risks "medicalising a whole generation".
Currently, obese children in England are primarily treated with diet and exercise. Some oral anti-obesity drugs are available but rarely prescribed. In 2017, NHS England said bariatric surgery should be considered only for a small number of severely obese children after non-invasive methods fail.
