New guidelines for treating childhood obesity include medications and surgery for first time

For the first time in 15 years, the American Academy of Pediatrics on Monday released new guidelines for treating childhood obesity, emphasizing a need for early and intensive treatment.

The guidance comes as childhood obesity rates have continued to rise over the past decade and a half, increasing from 17% to 20%, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Since the 1980s, obesity rates have tripled in children and quadrupled in adolescents.

The pandemic made matters worse, said Dr. Joan Han, a professor and chief of the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital, who was not involved in the new report. One CDC report found that the rate of weight gain nearly doubled in 2020, compared with prepandemic years.

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