CHILDREN as young as six years old are being recruited on a trial of fat jabs by NHS hospitals.
Ozempic and Wegovy jabs have been hugely popular among adults as a weight loss tool, but come with some nasty side effects.
GettyKids as young as six years old are being enrolled into a trial of Wegovy[/caption]
ReutersInjection pens of Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss drug Wegovy[/caption]
And now the company behind the jabs are sponsoring a study of the active ingredient in the jabs (semaglutide) on overweight kids and teens.
They are being enrolled at four NHS hospitals in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and Bristol as well as several other locations across the globe, including the US, Germany, Portugal and Sweden.
Southampton is also listed as ‘withdrawn’ from taking part.
The trial has two arms; one among six to 12-year-olds, and another among those older than 12 but less than 18 years old.
Over two and a half years, researchers will compare weight loss in those given either semaglutide or a dummy drug at random.
Semaglutide mimics the hormone responsible for regulating appetite (GLP-1), reducing appetite, eating and therefore weight.
Some 210 participants will be recruited and will also be given a restricted calorie diet and exercise programme.
Criteria for joining the trial include that the child must be overweight and have at least one health condition such as type 2 diabetes, and their parents have tried and failed to reduce their weight.
Novo Nordisk is sponsoring the study. The company is behind both Wegovy and Ozempic.
Research has shown that people using semaglutide can drop around 16 per cent of their body weight over 68 weeks. But it is not considered a magic pill.
A person still needs to make lifestyle changes to keep the weight off – although it is considered easier to do this when appetite is reduced.
Side effects of the drug include dizziness, vomiting, fatigue and headaches.
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found nausea and diarrhoea were the most common side-effects.
But these were “typically transient and mild-to-moderate in severity and subsided with time”, researchers said.
Other rare complications include gallbladder problems, kidney failure, serious allergic reaction and depression.
While Ozempic is used for the treatment of type-2 diabetes, Wegovy is primarily a weight loss medication and has been in the UK since 2022.
The typical dose for weight loss is 2.4 milligrams, given weekly as subcutaneous (under the skin) self-injections.
Fat jabs rejected for Brit teens
Wegovy has been approved for weight loss among 12 to 17-year-olds in the US.
Novo Nordisk has been seeking approval from NICE, the UK’s medicine watchdog.
But in July last year, NICE said it could not make a recommendation for Wegovy in 12 to 17-year-olds because it had not been provided enough evidence. It added it was open to review the decision.
The trial could therefore pave the way for teenagers – and even children in primary school – to get prescriptions.
NHS England said while the trial is being held at health service facilities, the study was not an NHS trial, MailOnline reported.
It wouldn’t be the first time fat jabs have been trialled on youngsters.
A clinical trial in Birmingham involving 180 obese and overweight children aged 12 to 17 suggested that the jabs helped them to reduce their body mass index by 16 per cent in 15 months.
Research in the US, published in May 2023, showed kids as young as 12 lost around 3st (18kg) on average on semaglutide injections.
Nearly half of teenagers given a weekly jab for 16 months dropped below clinical obesity levels.
However, Dr Aaron Kelly, of Minnesota University in the US, who led the study, said obese kids may have to stay on it to avoid weight “coming right back”.
He told the European Congress on Obesity, in Dublin: “Obesity is a chronic disease and chronic diseases require chronic treatments.
“Semaglutide is transformative for many children who are able to get access. It can be life-changing.
“Nothing brings me more pleasure than hearing the stories from adolescents who have been struggling their entire life to manage their weight.
“This gives them a tool to help take control of their weight, it’s transformational for many teenagers.”
Everything you need to know about fat jabs
What you should know about Ozempic, Wegovy, Saxenda and Mounjaro
Weight loss jabs are a hot media topic at the moment, with hundreds of success stories sharing how they helped them shed the pounds.
In March 2023, the NHS announced it would make Wegovy, a drug made by Danish firm Novo Nordisk, available on prescription to thousands of obese Brits.
It contains the drug semaglutide, which is said to have helped reality star Kim Kardashian and Twitter boss Elon Musk lose weight.
Wegovy, which helped a third of people reduce their weight by 20 per cent in trials, is now available from pharmacies like Boots.
How do they work?
The jabs work by suppressing your appetite, making you eat less calories and therefore lose weight.
To do this, an ingredient found in the fat-busting drug, known as Semaglutide, mimics the role of a natural hormone, called GLP-1.
GLP-1 is part of the signalling pathway that tells your body you have eaten, and prepares it to use the energy that comes from your food.
London GP and founder of wellgoodwellbeing.com, Dr Zoe Watson, said: “Your body naturally produces an appetite regulating hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1.
“These jabs work by regulating your appetite, which can lead to eating fewer calories and losing weight.”
Aren’t they diabetes drugs?
Semaglutide, the active drug in Wegovy, was originally sold under the name Ozempic specifically for diabetes patients.
But they started noticing it helped suppress their appetites, stopping them eating as much and helping them shed the pounds.
So Novo Nordisk developed Wegovy, which contains the same chemical but at higher doses specifically to aid weight loss.
Wegovy is not prescribed for diabetes patients.
Can I get them?
Wegovy is offered on prescription to obese adults given specialist weight loss treatment.
The NHS currently also offers a similar drug called Saxenda, or liraglutide.
Both are only available on Tier 3 and Tier 4 weight management services, which means you have to be referred to weight management clinics led by experts.
GPs can’t prescribe them on their own either, Dr Watson said.
The jabs have to be taken as part of an overall programme to help with lifestyle changes and psychological support to get the best effect from the medication prescribed.
But despite being approved for use, supply of Wegovy on the NHS has been postponed indefinitely because of a surge in worldwide demand.
Supply was also halved in the US because of the skyrocketing demand.
Are there any risks?
Like all medicines, the jabs do not come without side effects.
Around half of people taking the drug experience gut issues, including sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea.
Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and clinical consultant at patient.info, said: “One of the more uncommon side effects is severe acute pancreatitis, which is extremely painful and happens to one in 500 people.”
Other uncommon side effects include altered taste, kidney problems, allergic reactions, thyroid tumours, gallbladder problems and hypoglycemia.
What other options are there?
Mounjaro (brand name for tirzepatide) also came onto the market in early 2024.
Like Wegovy, tirzepatide stems from a drug originally designed to treat diabetes.
The weekly injection helped overweight people drop more than two stone in 18 months.
It is available with to order with a prescription online from pharmacies including Superdrug and LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor.
It works in a similar way to Wegovy and Saxenda, but is more effective.
Dr Mitra Dutt from LloydsPharmacy says: “Based on clinical trials, 96 per cent of people were able to lose more than five per cent of their body fat using Mounjaro. In similar trials, 84 per cent of people lost more than five per cent of their body weight on Wegovy, and 60 per cent on Saxenda.
“Mounjaro works by activating two hormonal receptors (GIP and GLP-1), which enhance insulin production, improve insulin sensitivity, and work to decrease food intake.”