Teenagers should be offered a “transformative” anti-obesity treatment to help them lose weight, experts have said. Academics said that the weight loss injection semaglutide could help adolescents with obesity to shed pounds after a new study found an average weight loss of 40 pounds (18 kilos). Teens living with obesity were offered the semaglutide drug for more than a year in a new clinical trial. The study, published at the European Congress on Obesity in Dublin and the journal Obesity, found that 45 per cent of teens using the appetite suppressant drug were no longer classed as obese 68 weeks after starting treatment. This is compared to 12 per cent in a group who were taking “dummy” drugs – also known as placebos. Some 19.5 per cent dropped down into the “overweight” category and a quarter (25.4 per cent) were able to reduce their BMI into the “normal” weight category, the conference heard. The average reduction in body weight with semaglutide – sold under the brand name Wegovy – compared to placebo was about 40 pounds (18 kilos), researchers said. Many do very well with this medication though, and it can be life-changing for them Dr Aaron Kelly, University of Minnesota The authors of the paper conclude that “semaglutide represents an efficacious treatment option for adolescents with obesity”. But presenting the study, Dr Aaron Kelly, from the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, USA, said that it should be taken as part of a package of measures to help teens living with the condition. He said that the earlier the treatment starts “the better” to prevent further weight gain. But he said that treatment should be taken long-term, as would be expected with other chronic conditions. Dr Kelly told reporters that there were side effects – mostly of nausea and vomiting – but these were “transient” and most dissipated over time. If you engage in treatment that’s effective, you’ll see an effect but if you take that treatment away – it’s like a rubber band, it’s going to come right back to where it started Dr Aaron Kelly “There’s a whole spectrum of outcomes when you use anti-obesity medications – some do really really well, some don’t do as well,” he said. “Many do very well with this medication though, and it can be life-changing for them. “Being a research scientist nothing brings me more pleasure than hearing the stories from the adolescents who have been struggling their entire life to manage their weight and haven’t been able to – it’s not about trying hard or not, they all try hard – this gives them a tool to help take control of their weight. “And that’s transformational for many teenagers.” He added: “I believe that health care providers should offer that as part of the comprehensive treatment approach – it’s not just one thing, it’s lifestyle therapy – which was included in this trial; it’s the use of anti-obesity medications and, for some, metabolic and bariatric surgery. “A question I get asked a lot is, ‘Is this going to solve the obesity problem? Should we just give it to everybody?’ No, it’s not going to solve the obesity problem, but it’s an important piece to the puzzle at helping to solve it especially for those who already have obesity.” Dr Kelly said that coming off the drugs would lead to weight coming back, adding: “Let’s use high blood pressure as an example, medications are commonly used and prescribed to treat high blood pressure. “And when they have prescribed, the intent of the health care provider – if (the drug is) tolerated and continues to be effective – effectively that person would stay on that medication, probably for the rest of their life. Obesity is exactly the same thing. “If you engage in treatment that’s effective, you’ll see an effect but if you take that treatment away – it’s like a rubber band, it’s going to come right back to where it started.” On when treatment should commence among teens, he added: “If obesity surfaces in childhood, it probably represents one of the most aggressive forms of obesity that we know of. “If you are a child or adolescent with obesity, you are highly likely to carry that obesity and excess adiposity into adulthood. You don’t just snap out of it. “My centre comes of the approach that the earlier the better. “And, and if medically eligible, the use of medications early is probably going to (give) the best outcomes over time because if you allow the disease to progress and the pounds to to add on over time, it gets harder and harder to draw that back. “And so conceptually, I think it makes sense to intervene early and not allow that to happen, and that probably gives the child the best shot at living a long, healthy, happy life.” Meanwhile, another study presented at the conference found that people who have shed weight may be at risk of “psychological scarring”. The paper, led by academics at the University of Liverpool, found that people who have had obesity, even if they have lost weight, could be at risk. Read More Gaining weight before 30 raises cancer risk decades later Artificial sweeteners do not help you lose weight, WHO warns How to talk to kids about weight and healthy eating Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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Andi Oliver was already whipping up cauliflower cheese at the age of seven, and could make a full roast dinner by the time she turned nine. So when she witnessed a home economics teacher pouring a packet of rice into a big, bubbling pan of water, leaving it to simmer then straining and rinsing it, she was puzzled to say the least. “I was like, ‘That’s not how you cook rice’. And I got kicked out of the lesson,” she says, chuckling at the memory. “I had to stand in the hallway. I was like, ‘What is she doing to the rice?'” Not that this incident derailed the culinary career of the 59-year-old chef, restauranteur and Great British Menu host, who was born in Kent and has lived in east London for 25 years. Oliver was taught to cook by her mother, who was born on the Caribbean island of Saint Kitts (her father hails from Antigua – the pair met in Leicester). Soon, she was in charge of dishing up dinner for herself and older brother Sean, who died of sickle cell anaemia in 1990, aged 27. “My mum was a teacher and my dad was off working and having philandering affairs, so when I came home from school I would make the tea for me and my brother.” Describing herself as a “latchkey kid”, Oliver doesn’t think she had a difficult childhood. “That’s just how it was,” she says, as warm and jovial during our chat as she is on TV. “I didn’t feel bad about it. I didn’t sit around wondering where my mummy was. It was just, that was life, that’s what you did, you got on with it.” Nor was she devastated when her parents eventually separated: “I was thrilled! I was delighted. They didn’t get on, they used to fight all the time. It was awful, so they were both much better when they weren’t together.” Oliver and her partner – restauranteur Garfield Hackett, with whom she shares daughter – the TV presenter – are still going strong after more than 27 years together. “The kindest man I know and my partner in life and all things” is how she describes Hackett in her inaugural cookbook, The Pepperpot Diaries. An ode to Caribbean cookery, as well as detailing essential eats, the book also chronicles three months Oliver spent in Antigua – a trip which started at Christmas 2019 and had to be extended (“the best luck in the world”) when lockdown began. How would the chef – known for her colourful outfits and infectious grin – describe the region’s cusine to the uninitiated? “The legacy in each island is very different,” she says. “But there are basic things like rice and peas, curry chicken and fried plantain, curry goat or goat water [a type of stew], fried fish. “One of the things I really hope [with this book] is that people start to think about that difference and celebrate it.” Even the classic titular dish – a slow cooked stew made with smoked beef and pork, veggies and beans – varies from island to island: “There’s a Guyanese pepperpot that’s a completely different dish to the Antiguan dish. And then they don’t really make pepperpot in Jamaica.” In her diary entries, the author doesn’t shy away from discussing the tragic history of the Caribbean, explaining how slavery influenced the islands’ food heritage. “You can’t really be in the Caribbean without thinking about those things,” Oliver says. “The legacy of that past, dark though it may be, is right there in your face.” And she’s keen to talk: “I think if you bring those things out into the light and discuss them we can divest ourselves of the pain of them and try to move forward in our lives.” Having experienced racism from a young age (“I’ve been told by people in England my whole life to ‘go home’, even though I was born here”), Oliver went through a “big angry phase” in her 20s. “When I was younger, my anger and my fury used to work against me quite a lot,” she reflects. “But now, as an adult woman who’s about to turn 60 I understand who I am and my power and where I come from and where I belong – where I have the right to be and where I want to be.” How did that angry youngster harness those emotions and channel them into a more positive outcome? “Age! Age helps enormously because you have so many different experiences. You start to learn that unbridled fury is in fact giving away your power,” she says. “You need to redirect it so that it becomes your strength, becomes the fuel and the fire that drives you – not the storm that wearies you.” ‘The Pepperpot Diaries: Stories From My Caribbean Table’ by Andi Oliver (published by DK, £27; photography by Robert Billington). Read More What is coronation chicken? The story of the royal recipe and how to make it Easy coronation chicken pie recipe chosen by Mary Berry Three one-pot recipes for washing up hater A coronation sherry cherry trifle recipe fit for a king Ainsley Harriott: Forget coronation chicken – make coronation kebabs instead Angela Hartnett: Mutton curry should be the new coronation chicken

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By the time I sit down at my table in Dorshi, a charming southeast Asian restaurant in the town of Bridport, Dorset, I’m exhausted but excited. The dumpling-forward eatery, tucked inside an alleyway, takes its inspiration from the streets of Penang, Malaysia. It has a hole-in-the-wall feel that many restaurants on the food-obsessed island have, as though you’ve squeezed yourself between two buildings only to find food heaven awaiting you. Opened by friends and owners Jollyon Carter and Radhika Mohendas in 2016, the pair had first spend time travelling around the UK to bring their delicious morsels to festivals, outdoor events and supper clubs. The Malaysian connection is made even clearer after I discover that Mohendas hails from the Southeast Asian country. Although she is absent from Dorshi on the night, I can see the cultural influence in everything – from the menu design, to the white sheets of paper clipped onto the tables, to the short, breezy curtains that hang down to give some semblance of separation between spaces. The presence of paper “tablecloths” suggest your meal might get a little messy, but it’s all part of the fun. The menu is also exciting, divided into dumpling and non-dumpling dishes, with unexpected combinations like pork and Bury black pudding, hot smoked fish, beancurd, and capers, and field mushroom and Dorset red cheddar. I want to order as many things as possible. But getting to this point of my evening has taken almost eight hours, when it should have taken no longer than four. My journey to Bridport began promisingly: there were no train strikes and my guest and I were well prepared with snacks and tinnies for the two-and-a-half-hour journey from London Waterloo. But no sooner had I stepped onto the train things began to go south – both literally and figuratively. The air conditioning was bust and the carriage got muggier and muggier as it crawled along the tracks. The train got stuck mid-way through the journey, leaving us wondering if we would be stranded at Brockenhurst for hours. By the time we actually arrived in Bridport, the journey had stretched to more than five hours. And really, I should’ve known this would happen considering the state of Britain’s railways. But this wasn’t even the end of our travel woes – later, we would discover that getting a taxi to pick you up on time in rural Dorset is something of a rarity, and trying to flag a taxi back to the hotel after 9pm was nearly impossible. Never mind though – here we finally are at Dorshi, stomachs rumbling and hopes high. We order all the aforementioned dumplings, with the addition of the white fish and sorrel number. For the non-dumpling dishes, one of the friendly waitresses recommends a celery, cucumber, strawberries and lovage salad coated in a kind of sauce made from cashews and nori seaweed, which was crunchy, fresh and delicious. We also indulge in fried shimeji mushrooms flavoured with togarashi, a Japanese spice blend of chilli flakes, seaweed and sesame seeds, and served with a seaweed mayo, as well as Hakata noodles (a type of ramen noodle) with the house broth and smoked garlic oil. Each dish is carefully crafted and balanced, making for perfect bites every time. The pork and black pudding steamed dumplings are succulent, while the hot smoked fish and beancurd fillings encased in crispy fried dumpling dough are a crispy, salty revelation. Mushroom and cheese in a dumpling? Yes please, I’d have 10 more of those if I could. I even go out on a limb and try a “kimchi pickleback” – a shot of tequila chased by a shot of kimchi juice. It’s a strange but wonderfully funky combination. Dorshi doesn’t fail to disappoint on any count, and it’s easy to see why everyone I had spoken to that day had raved about it. When we finally return to the family-run Outbuildings, where we were staying the night, I rave about the dumplings we had just devoured to Ed Whitehead and his husband Dom, who had welcomed us with warm smiles to what they describe as a “mini Soho Farmhouse”. The luxurious farm stay (three words that sound strange strung together, but somehow work) was a huge treat that we enjoyed immensely, even going so far as to run the outdoor bath at The Coop the morning after and soak in the calmness of the countryside. Naturally, our taxi back to the station was late and we had just three minutes to spare before jumping onto our train back to London – which was also delayed. But despite all the travel woes, I’d love to go back to Bridport, stay at Outbuildings and dine at the lovely Dorshi again. If only the country’s public transport systems would get its act together, then everyone else can do the same, too. Dorshi, 6 Chancery Ln, Bridport, DT6 3PX | dorshi.co.uk | 01308 423221 Read More The best outdoor restaurants, terraces and rooftop bars in London to book now In Horto: Hearty, outdoorsy fare in a secret London Bridge garden The Union Rye, review: Finally, a decent restaurant in this charming East Sussex town 30-minute summer recipes for all the family to enjoy What to cook this week: Tomato tart, sweetcorn pasta and other summery suppers Tofu chicken to chickpea bacon – how and why you should make plant-based meat at home

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