China has approved its first GLP-1 receptor agonist weight-loss drug in pill form, Medical Xpress reports.

US pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly has received approval to market orforglipron under the brand name Muyouda. The drug is intended for adults with obesity or overweight who have at least one weight-related health condition.

China's National Medical Products Administration announced the approval on Thursday. The drug is taken orally once a day. It was approved in the US in April.

GLP-1 drugs mimic the action of a natural gut hormone that regulates blood sugar levels and suppresses appetite, helping people lose weight. These drugs have become highly popular in recent years, and pharmaceutical companies are actively developing pill formulations as an alternative to injections.

Eli Lilly beat competitors, including Denmark's Novo Nordisk, the maker of Wegovy, to become the first company to receive approval to market an oral weight-loss drug in this class in China. Meanwhile, injectable GLP-1 drugs from Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and China's Innovent are already widely available in the local market.

China's market for weight-loss treatments is growing rapidly amid rising rates of overweight and obesity. According to a study published in The Lancet in 2025, the number of Chinese adults with overweight or obesity could reach 630 million by 2050.

China's National Health Commission has also warned that 65% of the country's population could have overweight or obesity by 2030.