A study published in Pediatrics on September 4, 2026 found that GLP-1 weight-loss drug prescriptions for children ages 8-11 with obesity rose from 0.03% in 2019 to 9.3% by June 2026, a 310-fold jump. NYU Grossman School of Medicine researchers pulled the numbers from health records covering more than 3.5 million kids in that age range. Of the 20,282 children prescribed a GLP-1, 93.7% had severe obesity and 65.2% had a related condition like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or sleep apnea. None of these drugs is FDA-approved for children under 12 — Wegovy and Saxenda start at 12, Zepbound is adults-only — so every prescription in this group is off-label. The surge follows the American Academy of Pediatrics' January 9, 2023 guideline, which told pediatricians to offer early drug treatment instead of "watchful waiting."

1. The Guidelines Are Working, Say the Doctors Behind Them (Dr. Babak Orandi and Dr. Allan Massie, NYU Grossman School of Medicine)

Obesity medicine researchers say the drugs are reaching the sickest kids, and the real problem is which kids still can't get them.

93.7% of these kids had severe obesity. Most were already sick. Dr. Babak Orandi, the study's lead author, points out that most of the children prescribed a GLP-1 had a weight-related illness on top of their obesity. "Our study offers the first national overview in young children of GLP-1 drugs and shows that while absolute numbers remain low, GLP-1 use is accelerating rapidly," he said. He says the drugs can be very effective at treating obesity and its complications — better blood sugar, weight loss, appetite control.

Orandi still wants more data before anyone declares victory. He says doctors need to keep monitoring these kids long-term to make sure the drugs stay safe and effective. He also says diet, activity, and behavioral support have to stay the foundation of treatment — the drugs add to that, they don't replace it.

Massie says the real problem is which kids aren't getting the drug. Co-author Dr. Allan Massie says the fact that wealthier kids are 55% more likely to get prescribed points to an access problem, not overuse. He says these treatments need to "become available to more than those who have access to health insurance and can afford to visit pediatric clinics."

Dr. Joey Skelton prescribes the drugs. He shares the worry too. He's a pediatrician at Wake Forest who runs a pediatric weight-management program that's operated for almost 20 years, and he says "unsupervised weight management is a gateway to disordered eating." He treats the drugs as medicine, not a shortcut, and won't hand them out as a quick cosmetic fix for kids.

2. Eating-Disorder Specialists Say This Is What They Warned About (Collaborative of Eating Disorders Organizations, Dr. Christine Peat, Dr. Cheri Levinson)

A coalition of 21 eating-disorder groups fought the 2023 guideline before a single one of these prescriptions was written. They think the new numbers prove their point.

Twenty-one eating-disorder organizations told the AAP this would happen. Four days after the 2023 guideline came out, the Collaborative of Eating Disorders Organizations wrote that "the new class of obesity drugs, GLP-1 agonists, do not have a long track record in adults, much less in growing children."

Diet drug use is linked to eating disorders, CEDO's letter says. It cites research showing kids who use over-the-counter diet pills are six times more likely to be diagnosed with an eating disorder within three years.

Dr. Christine Peat warned about this risk back in 2024. The University of North Carolina eating-disorder researcher told STAT News: "There is a real risk that some of these kids may be inadvertently sort of set up for an eating disorder."

University of Louisville's Dr. Cheri Levinson has seen that pattern firsthand. She told STAT News that "many of our kids and adolescent patients have come to us after developing an eating disorder because of an appointment with a pediatrician."

The prescription numbers by income go the wrong way, this camp says. If the sickest kids were driving prescriptions, richer and poorer families should look similar. Instead, wealthier families are 55% more likely to get a prescription. Eating-disorder specialists read that as demand outpacing medical need, not equal access for the neediest kids.

Where This Lands

NYU's researchers say the data shows the 2023 guideline reaching exactly the kids it was built for — severely obese, already sick, and still underserved in poorer communities. Eating-disorder specialists say the same guideline opened the door to exactly what they warned about in 2023: drugs with no pediatric track record, prescribed off-label to 8-year-olds, without enough screening for the eating disorders that weight-loss treatment can trigger. Both camps are reading the same 310-fold jump. NYU calls it the guideline finally working. Eating-disorder specialists call it the guideline's warning coming true.

Sources