Fewer than a tenth of people eligible to benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it publishes its initial advice on the therapies.
Considering over a billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and ongoing treatment," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant obstacles to broad availability to the treatments that can help people shift significant weight, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present most favorable scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to increase availability, by strategies including voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Work
GLP-1 drugs imitate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so users consume fewer calories.
Individuals commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Research suggests patients may regain a significant portion a year later of stopping the treatment, because their usual appetite come back.
To be carrying excess weight increases your chance for contracting health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in every country and was linked to millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
