scholarly journals Pharmacological Treatment of Obesity in Children and Adolescents: Present and Future

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Iughetti ◽  
Mariachiara China ◽  
Rossella Berri ◽  
Barbara Predieri

The prevalence of overweight and obesity is increasing in children and adolescents worldwide raising the question on the approach to this condition because of the potential morbidity, mortality, and economic tolls. Dietetic and behavioral treatments alone have only limited success; consequently, discussion on strategies for treating childhood and adolescent obesity has been promoted. Considering that our knowledge on the physiological systems regulating food intake and body weight is considerably increased, many studies have underlined the scientific and clinical relevance of potential treatments based on management of peripheral or central neuropeptides signals by drugs. In this paper, we analyze the data on the currently approved obesity pharmacological treatment suggesting the new potential drugs.

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dartagnan Pinto Guedes ◽  
Francisléia Nascimento Almeida ◽  
Jaime Tolentino M. Neto ◽  
Maria de Fátima de M. Maia ◽  
Thatiana Maia Tolentino

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of low body weight/thinness, overweight and obesity in a representative sample of children and adolescents from a Brazilian region with low economic development. METHODS: A total of 982 girls and 986 boys, aged seven to 17 years old and assisted by Segundo Tempo Program, from Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil, were included in the study. Low body weight/thinness, overweight and obesity were defined based on body mass cut-off indexes recommended by the International Obesity Task Force. The prevalence of the nutritional status according to sex and age was compared by chi-square test. RESULTS: In girls, the frequency of low body weight/thinness, overweight and obesity was 4.1, 18.4 and 3.8%, respectively; in boys, these percentages were 6.3, 13.2 and 2.9%, respectively. The low body weight/thinness for girls raised from 2.7% (7-10 years old) to 5.5% (15-17 years old); the body weight excess (overweight and obesity) decreased from 30.1 to 16.2% for the same age groups. In boys, the corresponding trends were from 3.2 to 9.4% for low body weight/thinness, and from 23.4 to 9.2%, for body weight excess. CONCLUSIONS: The data indicate that, even in a region with low economic status, the body weight excess was the main problem associated with nutritional health. The high overweight and obesity prevalence rates indicate the need of public policies for promoting healthy feeding behaviors and physical activity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mehdi Labyb ◽  
Chloé Chrétien ◽  
Aurélie Caillon ◽  
Françoise Rohner-Jeanrenaud ◽  
Jordi Altirriba

Whereas leptin administration only has a negligible effect on the treatment of obesity, it has been demonstrated that its action can be improved by co-administration of leptin and one of its sensitizers. Considering that oxytocin treatment decreases body weight in obese animals and humans, we investigated the effects of oxytocin and leptin cotreatment. First, lean and diet-induced obese (DIO) mice were treated with oxytocin for 2 weeks and we measured the acute leptin response. Second, DIO mice were treated for 2 weeks with saline, oxytocin (50 μg/day), leptin (20 or 40 µg/day) or oxytocin plus leptin. Oxytocin pre-treatment restored a normal acute leptin response, decreasing food intake and body weight gain. Chronic continuous administration of oxytocin or leptin at 40 µg/day decreased body weight in the presence (leptin) or in the absence (oxytocin) of cumulative differences in food intake. Saline or leptin treatment at 20 µg/day had no impact on body weight. Oxytocin and leptin cotreatments had no additional effects compared with single treatments. These results point to the fact that chronic oxytocin treatment improves the acute, but not the chronic leptin response, suggesting that this treatment could be used to improve the short-term satiety effect of leptin.


2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 85-96
Author(s):  
Marijana Jandrić-Kočić

Introduction/Aim: 41 million children under the age of 5 and 340 million children and adolescents aged 5 to 19 are overweight or obese. Obesity in children and adolescents is the most important predictor of high blood pressure. The aim of the study was to examine the incidence of overweight and obesity in primary school children aged 6 to 15 years, as well as to examine the incidence of prehypertension and hypertension in children who were overweight and obese. Method: The study included 85 of 86 children from the Primary School "Krupa na Uni". Data were collected with the help of a questionnaire, while body weight and blood pressure were measured. The chi-square test and t-test were used for the statistical analysis of data Results: The cross-sectional study included 85 children, 45 (52.9%) boys and 40 (47.1%) girls with an average age of 10.87 ± 2.70 years. Normal weight was found in 54 (63.5%) subjects, underweight in 12 (14.1%), overweight in 5 (5.9%), and obesity in 14 (16.5%). 76 (89.4%) subjects had normal blood pressure values, 5 (5.9%) prehypertensive state, and 4 (4.7%) arterial hypertension. There was no significant difference between younger and older children regarding their nutritional status (p=0.477) and blood pressure levels (p=0.453). Children who were overweight and obese had prehypertension and hypertension significantly more often (p˂0.001). Conclusion: Every fifth child was overweight or obese, while prehypertension or hypertension were found in every tenth child. The timely change of diet and physical activity could contribute to the regulation of body weight and the regulation of blood pressure, as well.


2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ya. V. Girsh ◽  
O. A. Gerasimchik

The steady rise of obesity in children and adolescents emphasizes the need for new, integrated approaches to its diagnosis and therapy. When diagnosing obesity and choosing methods for its correction, it is fundamentally important to use reliable methods of estimating the amount of adipose tissue. Using the body mass index is not always sufficient, since it does not provide complete information on quantitative content in the body weight of the patient’s body. For these purposes in clinical medicine use of bioimpedance analysis to assess the indicators, which characterize the basal metabolism, active cell mass, fat and basirova mass and total water content in the body. However, the holding of bioimpedance body composition analysis is currently limited mainly to dietetics and sports medicine, and adult patients. Quite interesting is the use of the bioimpedance method in the pediatric age group for accurate evaluation of body composition of children of various ages and body weight that will allow for dynamic control of all types of metabolism to evaluate the effectiveness of the observation and treatment of patients with overweight and obesity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (533) ◽  
pp. eaay8071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha M. Fortin ◽  
Rachele K. Lipsky ◽  
Rinzin Lhamo ◽  
Jack Chen ◽  
Eun Kim ◽  
...  

The glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonist liraglutide is approved for the treatment of obesity; however, there is still much to be learned regarding the neuronal sites of action that underlie its suppressive effects on food intake and body weight. Peripherally administered liraglutide in rats acts in part through central GLP-1Rs in both the hypothalamus and the hindbrain. Here, we extend findings supporting a role for hindbrain GLP-1Rs in mediating the anorectic effects of liraglutide in male rats. To dissociate the contribution of GLP-1Rs in the area postrema (AP) and the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS), we examined the effects of liraglutide in both NTS AAV-shRNA–driven Glp1r knockdown and AP-lesioned animals. Knockdown of NTS GLP-1Rs, but not surgical lesioning of the AP, attenuated the anorectic and body weight–reducing effects of acutely delivered liraglutide. In addition, NTS c-Fos responses were maintained in AP-lesioned animals. Moreover, NTS Glp1r knockdown was sufficient to attenuate the intake- and body weight–reducing effects of chronic daily administered liraglutide over 3 weeks. Development of improved obesity pharmacotherapies requires an understanding of the cellular phenotypes targeted by GLP-1R agonists. Fluorescence in situ hybridization identified Glp1r transcripts in NTS GABAergic neurons, which when inhibited using chemogenetics, attenuated the food intake– and body weight–reducing effects of liraglutide. This work demonstrates the contribution of NTS GLP-1Rs to the anorectic potential of liraglutide and highlights a phenotypically distinct (GABAergic) population of neurons within the NTS that express the GLP-1R and are involved in the mediation of liraglutide signaling.


Nutrients ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Brusaferro ◽  
Rita Cozzali ◽  
Ciriana Orabona ◽  
Anna Biscarini ◽  
Edoardo Farinelli ◽  
...  

In recent years, attention has been given to the role potentially played by gut microbiota in the development of obesity. Several studies have shown that in individuals with obesity, the gut microbiota composition can be significantly different from that of lean individuals, that faecal bacteria can exert a fundamental role in modulating energy metabolism, and that modifications of gut microbiota composition can be associated with increases or reductions of body weight and body mass index. Based on this evidence, manipulation of the gut microbiota with probiotics has been considered a possible method to prevent and treat obesity. However, despite a great amount of data, the use of probiotics to prevent and treat obesity and related problems remains debated. Studies have found that the probiotic effect on body weight and metabolism is strain specific and that only some of the species included in the Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium genera are effective, whereas the use of other strains can be deleterious. However, the dosage, duration of administration, and long-term effects of probiotics administration to prevent overweight and obesity are not known. Further studies are needed before probiotics can be rationally prescribed for the prevention or treatment of obesity. Control of the diet and environmental and life-style factors that favour obesity development remain the best solution to problems related to weight gain.


2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ken-ichiro Nakajima ◽  
Zhenzhong Cui ◽  
Chia Li ◽  
Jaroslawna Meister ◽  
Yinghong Cui ◽  
...  

Abstract Agouti-related peptide (AgRP) neurons of the hypothalamus play a key role in regulating food intake and body weight, by releasing three different orexigenic molecules: AgRP; GABA; and neuropeptide Y. AgRP neurons express various G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) with different coupling properties, including Gs-linked GPCRs. At present, the potential role of Gs-coupled GPCRs in regulating the activity of AgRP neurons remains unknown. Here we show that the activation of Gs-coupled receptors expressed by AgRP neurons leads to a robust and sustained increase in food intake. We also provide detailed mechanistic data linking the stimulation of this class of receptors to the observed feeding phenotype. Moreover, we show that this pathway is clearly distinct from other GPCR signalling cascades that are operative in AgRP neurons. Our data suggest that drugs able to inhibit this signalling pathway may become useful for the treatment of obesity.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 2062
Author(s):  
Annica Franziska Dörsam ◽  
Alisa Weiland ◽  
Helene Sauer ◽  
Katrin Elisabeth Giel ◽  
Nanette Stroebele-Benschop ◽  
...  

Purpose: The influence of dishware on portion size perception in children and adolescents is inconclusive. This study investigated how children and adolescents with both obesity and a normal weight perceived portion size in different sized and shaped dishware items. Methods: The study included 60 children and adolescents with overweight and obesity (OBE) and 27 children and adolescents with normal weight (NW) aged from 9 to 17 years. The participants estimated quantities in three pairs of drinking glasses, one pair of bowls and two pairs of plates which varied in size and shape. The children were instructed to state intuitively which portion they would choose for big or small thirst/hunger. Thereafter they were asked to determine the exact amount by answering which dishware item contained the larger/smaller portion (cognitive evaluation). Results: There were no substantial differences in the intuitive evaluation of portion sizes between OBE and NW. During the cognitive evaluation, OBE estimated the amount of water in the glasses more correctly compared to NW (61% vs. 43%; p = 0.008); OBE estimated the amount of lentils in the bowls and on the plates significantly less correctly (39%) compared to NW (56%; p = 0.013). Conclusions: Habit formation and environmental stimuli might play a greater role in estimating food amounts in dishware than the child’s and adolescent’s body weight.


New Medicine ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Deszczyńska ◽  
Paweł Piątkiewicz ◽  
Renata Górska

Introduction. Improper eating habits among children and adolescents often lead to overweight and obesity. Research indicates that these are risk factors for many diseases, including diseases in the oral cavity. Aim. To analyse the correlations of selected parameters of dental and periodontal health as well as oral hygiene status in overweight and obese children and adolescents versus control group. Material and methods. The study included 120 patients aged 11-18 years, who were classified into a study group with 60 overweight/obese individuals and a control group of 60 individuals with normal body weight based on BMI (Body Mass Index). Each patient underwent anthropometric measurements, such as height (cm), body weight (kg), which were used to calculate BMI. Additional measurements were taken of waist circumference (WC) and hip circumference (HC), to obtain the waist-hip ratio (WHR). Clinical examination of the oral cavity included an assessment of dentition (DMF), oral hygiene API (Approximal Plaque Index) and periodontal tissue (PD ? Pocket Depth, CAL ? Clinical Attachment Level, %BOP ? % Bleeding On Probing) and CPITN (The Community Periodontal Index for Treatment Needs). Results. Statistically significant differences were found between patient groups with BMI ≥ 25 and BMI < 25 in the values of the following parameters: DMF p = 0.005, API p < 0.001, %BOP p < 0.001, PD p < 0.001, CPI p < 0.001. Conclusions. Overweight and obese children were found to have worse parameters of dental and periodontal health as well as oral hygiene status compared to the group with normal weight. Our observations indicate that overweight and obesity may be potential risk factors for periodontal diseases in the study group.


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