Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly will test well-known diabetes drugs in a new function as an obesity drug for children over the age of six, Bloomberg News reports, citing anonymous sources with knowledge of the trial plans.

For Eli Lilly, it is the diabetes drug Mounjaro, which the US pharmaceutical company wants to be able to use in obese children over the age of six. At Novo Nordisk, Saxenda, a milder precursor to the very popular Ozempic, will be studied for use in obese children.

Eli Lilly has already confirmed that they are recruiting subjects as young as 12 years old, but there are no reports of children as young as six years old.

Novo Nordisk declines to comment, citing the quiet period ahead of the company’s financial results, which are expected to be published on Nov. 2. However, back in August, the Danish pharmaceutical company announced that it would be looking into more pediatric studies in the ”not too distant future”.

If either of the two companies succeed in getting their products approved for that function and for children as young as six years old, it will be the first time a GLP-1-based product will have that option, Bloomberg writes.

(Translated using DeepL with additional editing by Kristoffer Grønbæk)