Taking a shot at teen obesity

A weight-loss drug reshapes the lives of teenagers battling obesity.

Global news you can trust. Download the Reuters App. One Essential Read One Essential Read Recommended by Chad Terhune, Healthcare Reporter Families grapple with the potential benefits and risks of obesity drugs for children   Austin has lost nearly a third of his body weight on Wegovy and isn't troubled by the prospect of taking the drug the rest of his life. REUTERS/Callaghan O'Hare My colleague Robin Respaut and I spent months reporting on a fast-growing cohort of American teens who take Wegovy or similar weight-loss drugs. These teens are at the forefront of a monumental shift in the treatment of childhood obesity, which has reached epidemic levels. For more than a year, we closely followed four teens and their families to examine in detail the impact of treatment. The medical community remains divided over whether to prescribe these drugs to children, citing safety concerns and the lack of long-term data. That split leaves families to consider for themselves the potential benefits and risks. Read the special report Get full access to Reuters.com for just $1/week. Subscribe now. Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website Reuters One Essential Read is sent three days a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here. Want to stop receiving this email? Unsubscribe here. To manage which newsletters you're signed up for, click here. This email includes limited tracking for Reuters to understand whether you've engaged with its contents. For more information on how we process your personal information and your rights, please see our Privacy Statement. Terms & Conditions © 2025 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036