Fewer than 10% of people eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy can access them, caution the WHO as it publishes its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is calling for increased and just availability to this class of drugs.
Per forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidance recognises that obesity is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and continuous support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are major hurdles to broad availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, says the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the current most favorable scenario, the production of such drugs might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The recommendation calls on countries and companies to expand availability, through measures including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Function
These medications mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and increase satiety so users eat less.
Patients typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the treatment, as their typical food cravings resume.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your likelihood for experiencing diseases, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight impacts individuals in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
