The authors of a Viewpoint article believe an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) clinical practice guideline for the evaluation and treatment of children with obesity ignores the importance of diet and lifestyle. “This guideline emphasizes weight loss drugs and bariatric surgery even though the prevalence of childhood obesity has increased far too fast to be attributable to otherwise untreatable genetic predisposition,” the authors write. “Diet received relatively little specific attention beyond advice to follow the US Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate recommendations and limit intake of sugar-sweetened beverages.”
They conclude: “With their remarkable efficacy, the new GLP-1 RAs inaugurate an era in which obesity could be reconceptualized as a treatable medical condition, lessening social stigma. This class of drugs, now available to adolescents, provides an important option to bariatric surgery for youth experiencing weight-related complications. To advance science and social justice, we must also better fund research into new dietary treatments and overcome obstacles to reimbursement for the intensive behavioral interventions considered necessary by the AAP guideline. Especially for children, diet and lifestyle must remain at the forefront of obesity prevention and treatment.”