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TOPLINE:

As semaglutide gains popularity for weight loss, youth express significant concerns about its safety and appropriate use, particularly given their heightened engagement with social media and vulnerability to weight-related discourse.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers conducted a nationwide text message poll through the MyVoice project, collecting responses from 753 youth participants aged 14-24 years in March 2024.
• Participants received five open-ended questions assessing awareness, experiences, and attitudes about medications such as Wegovy or Ozempic for weight loss, with $1 compensation per completed survey.
• Analysis included content analysis by six qualitative researchers who developed and refined a codebook through iterative review of responses.
• Survey responses were independently reviewed by two coders who reconciled disagreements, with frequencies calculated for yes/no responses and thematic codes.
• Demographic comparisons across groups were evaluated using chi-square tests with statistical significance set at (P < .05).

TAKEAWAY:

• Among 753 participants, 547 responded (73% response rate), with an average age of 20.4 ± 2.5 years and 50.3% identifying as women.
• Nearly three quarters of respondents (73.6%; n = 401) had heard of medications like Ozempic and Wegovy, with awareness highest among multiracial (84.6%) and White (76.9%) respondents (P = .02).
• More than 1 in 4 respondents (26.1%; n = 138) reported knowing someone using these medications, with higher frequency among women (31.6%) than men (20.8%) and other genders (20.3%) (P = .02).
• Significant gender differences emerged in attitudes toward medical necessity, with only 8.1% of men agreeing compared with 22.3% of women and 26.6% of individuals identifying as transgender, nonbinary, or other gender identity (P < .001).

IN PRACTICE:

“Three primary concerns were expressed by respondents, including (1) safety, related to risks and side effects of the medication in general and use by young people in particular; (2) inappropriate use, including glamorization of weight loss and widespread use contributing to shortages for individuals with diabetes; and (3) role of personal responsibility to engage in a healthy lifestyle first, or in instead of, weight-loss medications,” the authors of the study wrote.

SOURCE:

This study was led by Mary Ellen Vajravelu, MD, MSHP, UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, and Kendrin Sonneville, ScD, RD, University of Michigan School of Public Health in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It was published online in Journal of Adolescent Health.

LIMITATIONS:

While the MyVoice samples were large and diverse, they were not nationally representative, and recruitment through social media may have limited generalizability. Response bias could have affected results as participants with stronger opinions about weight-loss medications may have been more likely to respond. The text message survey format did not allow for follow-up questioning to clarify responses. Additionally, body mass index and medical history were not assessed, preventing analysis of how opinions differed by weight status. The cross-sectional design also limited assessment of how views might change over time as new evidence emerges about youth weight-loss medication use.

DISCLOSURES:

Vajravelu disclosed serving as a co-investigator on a clinical trial sponsored by Novo Nordisk without financial compensation. This study received funding from the Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research, the University of Michigan MCubed program, and the University of Michigan Department of Family Medicine. The remaining authors reported no conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.