Less than a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it issues its first recommendations on the drugs.
Given in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to this class of drugs.
According to projections, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidance affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with comprehensive and lifelong treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are significant barriers to widespread availability to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the current best projected case, the supply of these medications might only reach approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of those who need them, as stated by the health organization.
The advice encourages nations and manufacturers to expand availability, through measures like licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the main ingredient of a leading brand – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Operate
These medications replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests patients may regain a significant portion after a year of discontinuing the drug, because their normal hunger resume.
To be overweight or obese elevates your risk for contracting diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain cancers.
Obesity affects individuals in every country and was responsible for millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
