World Health Organization advises against weight-loss drugs and surgery for children under ten

Medicine and surgery are not the right answer for overweight children, the World Health Organization announced on Wednesday in its first guidelines on the rising rates of childhood obesity. The UN health agency stated that it does not recommend weight-loss drugs, stomach surgeries or weight-loss devices for children aged zero to nine years.

Treatment Rules for Teens

For teenagers aged 10 to 19, approved medicines may be considered only after a supervised lifestyle programme fails to achieve the desired results. Bariatric surgery, which changes the stomach or digestive tract, may also be considered under strict conditions for teens with severe obesity. Specifically, Maria Nieves Garcia Casal, a scientist in the WHO's nutrition and food safety department, explained that surgery may be considered during adolescence for severe cases with complications like type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, provided diet and lifestyle changes have failed.

Global Numbers and Mental Health

Global childhood obesity has surged from two percent in 1990 to eight percent in 2024. In 2024, roughly 70 million children aged five to nine and 100 million adolescents aged 10 to 19 were obese worldwide. Luz Maria De Regil, director of the WHO's nutrition and food safety department, noted that this increase is happening in all regions, growing in low- and middle-income countries while some high-income nations are starting to stop the rise. The guidelines also emphasized addressing mental health alongside obesity because anxiety, depression and low self-esteem can lead to unhealthy eating, lack of physical activity and social withdrawal, while affected children often face stigma and bullying.

Context

These new guidelines for younger populations contrast with the WHO's adult obesity advice issued in December 2025, which permitted the use of appetite-suppressing drugs like GLP-1 agonists such as Ozempic and Mounjaro. Public health policies often draw a clear line between growing children and adults when it comes to medical interventions for weight management.