About weight management medication for children
Obesity, or excess body weight, can increase a child’s risk for chronic and serious medical conditions. It is a disease defined as a body mass index of >95th percentile for children and >30 kg/m2 for adults. It carries a particularly increased risk for conditions such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure (hypertension), high cholesterol, orthopedic problems, and liver disease.
Some children and teenagers are more prone to obesity than others, although health experts haven’t been able to definitively pinpoint why. However, it is believed that obesity can be caused by a combination of environment, genetics, nutrition, and energy expenditure.
Weight management medications — along with treatment options such as lifestyle intervention, behavioral and nutritional counseling, pharmacological therapy, and behavioral surgery — can help manage obesity. Weight management medications particularly help those with a body mass index (BMI) in the >95th percentile. They can make a child feel less hungry or feel as if their stomach is full sooner than normal. Some medications slow the absorption of fat from foods.
Which medications are used for weight loss in children?
- Semaglutide and liraglutide: These act like the hormone GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide), which tells your brain and stomach that you’ve eaten enough. The drugs act like the hormone by slowing the emptying of the stomach to help your child feel less hungry after meals.
- Tirzepatide: This medication combines the effects of GLP-1 and another hormone, GIP (gastric inhibitory peptide), to help patients feel less hungry by working in the brain and by slowing stomach emptying.
- Phentermine: This medication also stimulates areas of the brain that register feelings of fullness in the brain. This will help reduce hunger and reduce body weight.
- Topiramate: This also works in the brain to help reduce appetite and control body weight. It is often used in combination with phentermine.
How we prescribe weight loss management medication
Several Boston Children’s programs prescribe weight loss management medication, including EMPOWER (Endocrine Medical and Pharmacologic Weight Regulation) and Adolescent Weight Loss (Bariatric) Surgery, as well as clinicians from other Division of Endocrinology programs.
Before prescribing any medication, our clinicians will discuss treatment options and any potential risks or side effects. Treatment plans will be tailored to an individual patient, and may include a mix of nutritional and behavioral treatments, medication, and, if needed, surgery.
Weight Management Medication | Programs & Services
Programs
EMPOWER
Program
The EMPoWeR (Medical and Pharmacologic Weight Regulation) Program aims to improve the quality of life for those with childhood obesity.
