Wegovy use among US teens rises by 50 per cent
The number of US adolescents being prescribed the weight-loss medication Wegovy has surged by 50 per cent in the past year, according to new data, as families and healthcare professionals increasingly consider GLP-1 therapies as part of obesity treatment.
Figures from health data firm Truveta show that the average rate of Wegovy prescriptions for teenagers rose from 9.9 per 100,000 in 2023 to 14.8 per 100,000 over the past year. In the first three months of 2025, the rate increased further to 17.3 per 100,000.
Despite the sharp rise, the prescriptions still represent a tiny proportion of the estimated 23,000 per 100,000 US teenagers living with obesity.
Wegovy, manufactured by Novo Nordisk, was approved for use in adolescents aged 12 and older in late 2022. It is the only GLP-1 medication currently authorised for this age group to treat obesity. Other similar medications, such as Ozempic and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, are not approved for adolescent use, nor were compounded versions included in the analysis.
The Truveta data is based on electronic health records from 1.3 million patients aged 12 to 17, across 30 US health systems, 900 hospitals, and more than 20,000 clinics.
While uptake is growing, many doctors remain cautious. Concerns persist about the long-term safety of GLP-1 drugs in children, particularly given that these treatments may require lifelong use. Access is also restricted by insurance policies that often do not cover obesity treatments, including lifestyle counselling, dietitian support or weight-loss medication.
At Nemours Children’s Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware, around 25 per cent of the 2,000 adolescents seen at the Healthy Weight and Wellness Clinic last year were prescribed a GLP-1 medication — almost double the number in 2023.
The rise comes against a backdrop of worsening obesity rates among young people. Around 23 per cent of Americans aged 12 to 19 are now living with obesity, compared with just 5 per cent in 1980, according to US government data. The condition significantly raises the risk of serious health problems such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and liver disease.
In response to the crisis, the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2023 recommended weight-loss medications for children as young as 12 in cases of obesity. However, adoption across the medical community remains inconsistent, with experts stressing the importance of combining pharmacological approaches with lifestyle changes and ongoing medical support.