New global guidelines warn against obesity drugs for children under 10
Source: BBC Health ↗
The World Health Organization issued a firm new guideline stating that obesity medicines, bariatric surgery and weight‑management devices should not be used for children under ten years old. The recommendation, voiced by Dr Luz De Rigil, WHO’s Director of Nutrition and Food Safety, underscores a “strong recommendation” against pharmacological or surgical interventions in this age group, reserving such treatments only for older children and adolescents when lifestyle measures have failed and the individual is deemed mentally and physically ready. The guidance arrives amid growing concern that some physicians are already prescribing weight‑loss drugs off‑label to children as young as six, while pharmaceutical firms are testing these medications in similarly young participants.
WHO highlighted that the global obesity burden among children is escalating dramatically, with an estimated 170 million children and adolescents classified as obese, including 70 million aged five to nine. The prevalence in this younger cohort has quadrupled since 1990, climbing from 2 % to 8 %, and in 2024, 35 million children under five were overweight. The organization emphasized that the primary response should focus on promoting healthy eating and regular physical activity, rather than medication or surgery, though it does not oppose continued drug trials. Limited evidence suggests digital tools such as activity trackers and active‑play video games could aid in encouraging movement, but these interventions remain ancillary to the core lifestyle approach.
Laurence Grummer‑Strawn, WHO’s head of Nutrition and Food Safety Actions, warned that early exposure to GLP‑1 agonists or similar drugs raises unanswered questions about the duration of treatment and the possibility of transitioning to diet‑based management later in life. He stressed the lack of evidence supporting temporary use of such medications in young children and urged caution against premature adoption. The WHO indicated that it will keep monitoring emerging data in this evolving field, signaling that future policy adjustments may occur as more robust evidence becomes available, while current guidance remains a clear deterrent against the use of obesity drugs in children under ten.
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🌍World Economymedium impact
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🌍 Effects for your country
The U.S.'s central bank rate currently stands at 3.75%, so a global rates move like this could feed through to local borrowing costs. The U.S.'s economy is growing at 2.3% with inflation at 3.2%, the backdrop this story's effects play out against locally. Housing-market effects like this are usually felt most where mortgage rates track the U.S.'s own central bank rate closely. With the U.S.'s unemployment at 4.4%, personal-finance effects like this land on a labour market that is currently fairly stable. Health-system effects are harder to localise from economic indicators alone — the real impact in the U.S. depends more on local healthcare capacity than the figures above.
The UK's central bank rate currently stands at 3.75%, so a global rates move like this could feed through to local borrowing costs. The UK's economy is growing at 0.8% with inflation at 3.2%, the backdrop this story's effects play out against locally. Housing-market effects like this are usually felt most where mortgage rates track the UK's own central bank rate closely. With the UK's unemployment at 5.6%, personal-finance effects like this land on a labour market that is currently fairly stable. Health-system effects are harder to localise from economic indicators alone — the real impact in the UK depends more on local healthcare capacity than the figures above.
France's central bank rate currently stands at 2%, so a global rates move like this could feed through to local borrowing costs. France's economy is growing at 0.9% with inflation at 1.8%, the backdrop this story's effects play out against locally. Housing-market effects like this are usually felt most where mortgage rates track France's own central bank rate closely. With France's unemployment at 7.9%, personal-finance effects like this land on a labour market that is already under strain. Health-system effects are harder to localise from economic indicators alone — the real impact in France depends more on local healthcare capacity than the figures above.
Romania's central bank rate currently stands at 6.5%, so a global rates move like this could feed through to local borrowing costs. Romania's economy is growing at 0.7% with inflation at 7.8%, the backdrop this story's effects play out against locally. Housing-market effects like this are usually felt most where mortgage rates track Romania's own central bank rate closely. With Romania's unemployment at 6%, personal-finance effects like this land on a labour market that is currently fairly stable. Health-system effects are harder to localise from economic indicators alone — the real impact in Romania depends more on local healthcare capacity than the figures above.
The UAE's central bank rate currently stands at 3.65%, so a global rates move like this could feed through to local borrowing costs. The UAE's economy is growing at 3.1% with inflation at 2.5%, the backdrop this story's effects play out against locally. Housing-market effects like this are usually felt most where mortgage rates track the UAE's own central bank rate closely. Health-system effects are harder to localise from economic indicators alone — the real impact in the UAE depends more on local healthcare capacity than the figures above.