More U.S. Adolescents Are Getting Weight-Loss Surgery

Weight-loss surgeries among adolescents increased substantially in recent years, part of an overall rise in obesity treatments in the U.S. The number of adolescents ages 10 to 19 who underwent metabolic or bariatric surgery rose about 20% in 2021 from the year before, according to a research letter published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Pediatrics. Rates of these surgeries, which are uncommon, also rose among minors between 2019 and 2020, even as rates for adults dipped. The findings come as doctors take an increasingly hands-on approach to weight loss, including in young people, amid rising rates of obesity in adults and children. Medical groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics have called for expanded access to weight-loss surgery and drugs to treat youth obesity. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The practice has also attracted controversy and raised questions about whether clinicians are being overly aggressive, and whether any ages are too young for medical intervention. Nearly 20% of U.S. children and adolescents live with obesity, which is linked to diseases like type 2 diabetes and heart disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Metabolic and bariatric surgery alter the stomach and intestines to aid weight loss, reducing food intake and changing how the body absorbs food. Only about 1% of eligible individuals undergo surgery, in part because of barriers like cost. Of those who get weight-loss...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized bloomberg wire healthscienceclimate Research Source Type: news