GLP-1 prescriptions for kids up more than 30,000% since 2019

(NewsNation) — Over the last seven years, GLP-1 medication use in children ages 8 to 11 has increased by nearly 31,000%, according to a new NYU Langone Health study. The Food and Drug Administration has not approved any GLP-1 medication for children under 12, but in drastic circumstances, doctors have prescribed it off-label. Researchers analyzed health records for 3,520,531 children with obesity but without diabetes. The share of those children ages 8 to 11 prescribed a GLP-1 rose from 0.03% in 2019 to 9.3% in 2026 — a 310-fold increase. Kids with obesity-related conditions, from high cholesterol to sleep apnea, were substantially more likely to be prescribed the drugs than those without. Dr. Babak J. Orandi, the study's lead investigator and associate professor in the Departments of Surgery and Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, told the New York Post that despite the sharp rise, only 0.6% of the study's 3.5 million children ever received a GLP-1 prescription over the full study period. 'In context, this is a very small number,' Orandi said. 'Against that denominator, 20,282 GLP-1 children receiving prescriptions represents a tiny fraction of children eligible for treatment. While the number receiving treatment is very small, uptake is accelerating quickly.' Orandi said he is more concerned about the 'underlying factors' driving obesity, which affects roughly 1 in 5 American children. Overall, the study found that GLP-1s so far seem to be reserved 'for those at greatest cardiometabolic risk.' Socioeconomic status also plays a role, with upper-income children more likely to be prescribed. Orandi noted that 'most who could benefit still aren't.'