Prognosis

Brazilians Binge on Weight-Loss Drugs

After the nation got hooked on junk food, a medication that costs $150 a month is flying off the shelves.

Photographer: Maria Magdalena Arrellaga/Bloomberg

Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

First Brazilians started gobbling up junk food. Now they’re clamoring for weight-loss drugs.

Brazil, where the obesity rate has surged over the past decade, is now the biggest growth driver for weight-loss treatments in the world and the No. 2 market for Saxenda, Novo Nordisk A/S’s industry-leading drug. Waistlines have expanded after the country became a key target for makers of packaged food.