Less than one in 10 individuals that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it issues its first recommendations on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is urging increased and just availability to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with holistic and continuous treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are major hurdles to widespread access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing substantial weight, says the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Despite the present most optimistic case, the supply of such drugs could only cover approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline urges countries and companies to widen availability, through measures such as licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Injections Work
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
People usually see weight reduction in the initial weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Studies indicates users may put most of the weight back on within a year of halting the treatment, when their normal food cravings return.
Being carrying excess weight raises your chance for contracting medical conditions, like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.