Under one in 10 individuals who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it publishes its first advice on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on projections, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and lifelong care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are significant hurdles to universal availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing significant weight, says the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Despite the present best projected case, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to increase access, by strategies such as licensing agreements.
A patent on the active ingredient – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance satiety so users consume fewer calories.
Individuals typically begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Research points to people may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the medication, because their typical hunger return.
Being above a healthy weight raises your risk for experiencing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
