Prepare for Ozem-kids!
The pharmaceutical firms behind Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy — which have exploded in popularity with adults seeking to lose weight — are testing whether the drugs are protected for children.
Eli Lilly, the maker of Mounjaro, said it’s planning to present the anti-diabetes meds to kids as young as six years old, in keeping with Bloomberg News.
The drug giant began recruiting children 12 and up this week for a clinical trial, in keeping with the report.
Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk can also be within the midst of clinical trials for its drug Saxenda, which is an older and fewer potent version of Ozempic and Wegovy, in children a minimum of six years of age, Bloomberg News reported.
The Post has sought comment from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly.
“We’re actually committed to innovation on this space that’s going to handle all segments of the population that’s affected,” an Eli Lilly spokesperson told Bloomberg.
In August, Novo’s head of development, Martin Holst Lange, told Bloomberg that the corporate was planning trials involving children within the “not-so-distant future.”
The Food and Drug Administration and health regulators in Europe have only approved the drugs, that are often known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, for use in people ages 12 and up.
In response to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly one in five children ages six and up suffer from obesity.
Novo Nordisk is anticipated to report that sales of Ozempic generated $3.32 billion in revenue within the third quarter while Wegovy sold $1.07 billion, in keeping with analysts surveyed by FactSet.
Their projections were reported by Barron’s.
Novo and Lilly posted the biggest year-over-year revenue growth increases within the second quarter on the strength of the sales of Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro.
Sales of Ozempic generated revenue of $3.2 billion within the second quarter — up from $2.1 billion throughout the same period in 2022.
Lilly’s Mounjaro generated $980 million in sales for the corporate throughout the second quarter — a 72% increase in comparison with the primary quarter.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs estimated that GLP-1 drugs will generate $100 billion by 2030 — though that number doesn’t think about the potential use by children, who would likely take the medication for an extended time period than adults.
While drugs like Ozempic have been known to trigger weight loss, some users report other less nice unintended effects.