Our adolescent weight loss plans are customized to your child, based on a complex, but proven system that has shown success on thousands of patients.
Weight Loss For Adolescents Ages 12 and Up
Dr. Michael Nusbaum and our medical staff at Nusbaum Medical Centers of New Jersey are leaders in weight loss for adolescents and weight loss for children in NJ. For over 25 years, our highly-trained weight loss team has worked with children who struggle with their weight and have successfully treated children who have since changed paths, made lifestyle changes and have lost significant weight with our youth medical weight loss system. Dr. Nusbaum is a world leader in teenage weight loss and he has discussed adolescent weight loss with Dr. Oz, Health.com, Readers Digest, NJ Biz, and many other media outlets over the years.
Obesity, an issue historically linked only to adults, has been growing at alarming rates among teens. Currently, nearly a quarter of American teenagers are overweight or obese. Weight-related issues and diseases, almost unheard of in adolescents just a decade ago, are becoming increasingly common. In fact, the rate of diabetes in obese adolescents has increased 33% in the last decade alone.
In our experience, teen patients could see a 30% to 60% loss of excess weight and it can be maintained by following our system. This is a life-changing experience at a time when young adults are developing their self-image and beginning the socialization processes. There is no reason why a teen should struggle with their appearance or rejection issues as a result of obesity. Contact our office today and schedule a confidential appointment with your child to see what options may be available for them.
Our adolescent weight loss plans are customized to your child based on a complex but proven system that has shown success for thousands of patients.
Semaglutide Weight Loss For Adolescents
The American Academy of Pediatrics recently listed new guidelines for treating obesity in children aged two years or older for the first time in 15 years. The recent announcement includes recommendations for weight-loss medication, such as Semaglutide, and even bariatric surgery for children.
- The American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines acknowledge that obesity is a chronic disease linked to factors such as lack of access to nutritious foods, physical activity, and healthcare.
- The new recommendations focus on the treatment of obesity rather than obesity prevention, which “will be addressed in another forthcoming” policy statement, according to the academy.
- It’s recommended that children six years or older should be annually tested for obesity through methods like body mass index (BMI) checks and motivational interviews.
- Overweight in children and teens is defined as having a BMI at or above the 85 percentile and below the 95 percentile—obesity in children and adolescents is defined as having a BMI at the 95 percentile or higher, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- The objective of the new guidelines is to assist patients in making sustainable “changes in lifestyle, behaviors or environment,” Dr. Sandra Hassink, an author of the new policies and vice chair of the AAP’s Clinical Practice Guideline Subcommittee on Obesity, said in a news release.
The academy recommends using weight-loss drugs in children aged 12 years or older, as well as behavioral therapy and lifestyle treatment. There was not enough evidence to recommend the use of weight-loss medications in children under 12 for the sole purpose of treating obesity. For children aged 13 or older with severe obesity, weight-loss surgery should be looked into, according to the new guidelines. A study found that adolescents who received bariatric surgery—a class of surgical procedures performed on the intestines or stomach to help with weight loss—saw a BMI reduction of 29%.
WEIGHT-LOSS MEDICATION APPROVED FOR CHILDREN
Several Food and Drug Administration-approved weight-loss drugs for children are on the market today. The research group said glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (type two diabetes drugs linked to weight loss) like semaglutide, exenatide, liraglutide, and dulaglutide reduce hunger by “slowing gastric emptying and by acting on targets in the central nervous system.”
- Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy—an injectable diabetes drug under the generic name semaglutide—is approved for children 12 and up with obesity.
- Daily injectable liraglutide (Saxenda) is FDA approved for obesity management in children 12 years or older.
- In June 2022, the FDA approved a supplemental indication for phentermine and topiramate extended-release capsules (brand name Qsymia) for chronic weight management in patients aged 12 or older diagnosed with obesity.
- Daily capsule orlistat (brand names Alli and Xenical) are FDA approved for use in children 12 years or up to treat obesity.
