Fewer than one in 10 individuals that would benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial guidance on the medications.
With over a billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is calling for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Per projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with thorough and ongoing treatment," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are key obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing substantial weight, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Despite the current most optimistic scenario, the supply of GLP-1 therapies might only reach about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The recommendation calls on governments and firms to widen availability, through strategies such as licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Work
GLP-1 drugs imitate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Studies points to people may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the drug, because their typical hunger return.
Being above a healthy weight elevates your risk for contracting diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight impacts individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
