Fewer than a tenth of patients who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it releases its initial advice on the medications.
Considering over a billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with holistic and continuous treatment," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key hurdles to universal access to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, notes the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even under the current best projected case, the manufacturing of these medications would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The recommendation encourages nations and manufacturers to widen access, through measures including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the main ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Work
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and boost the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
Individuals typically begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Research indicates patients may see weight return a year later of discontinuing the drug, when their typical appetite come back.
Being overweight or obese increases your risk for experiencing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns people in countries worldwide and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
