Weight loss jabs should be first-line obesity treatment in most cases, new guidance states

Weight loss jabs Mounjaro and Wegovy are so effective they should be the first treatment for obesity “in almost all cases”, according to new medical guidance.

The European Association for the Study of Obesity praised the drugs’ effectiveness and wider health benefits in new guidance to doctors.

It described them as slimming aids that can also cut the risk of related conditions such as high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

Three in ten Britons – around 16m adults – are obese, but only 1.5m use the injections, most bought privately at about £200 a month.

Trials have shown adults using semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic, lost about 14 per cent of their body weight over 72 weeks.

Those taking tirzepatide – marketed as Mounjaro and sometimes dubbed the “king kong” of weight loss jabs – lost about 20 per cent over the same period.

Dr Andreea Ciudin, co-first author of the guidance from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, said the drugs were “completely transforming care of obesity and its complications”.

She added: “Even though there are several options on the market, the reality is that semaglutide and tirzepatide are so effective that they should be the first choice in almost all cases.”

The guidelines were produced by an international team of experts, including contributors from the UK.

They analysed existing studies and created an algorithm to help doctors decide the best treatment based on a patient’s weight and associated conditions.

They concluded that tirzepatide and semaglutide should be considered the “medications of choice” when a substantial level of total body weight loss is required.

When a lesser degree of weight loss is the aim, other medicines such as liraglutide, naltrexone–bupropion and phentermine–topiramate may be appropriate.

The guidance comes after health secretary Wes Streeting pledged this week to make injections available to millions more patients on the NHS.

Speaking at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, he said it was unfair that wealthier people had been able to benefit from the drugs’ “transformative” effects “on their health, their confidence and their quality of life” while those unable to pay privately had gone without.

He added: “Weight-loss jabs could help us finally defeat obesity.

“Our mission is to ensure that the best science, the best healthcare and the best innovations are available not just to some, but to all.”