Fewer than a tenth of individuals eligible to benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the global health agency as it releases its first guidance on the therapies.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
Based on forecasts, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and lifelong support," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are major barriers to broad availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing significant body mass, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the current best projected outlook, the production of such drugs would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to widen access, via measures like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the primary component of a leading brand – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
The injections imitate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so individuals consume fewer calories.
Patients typically begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Evidence indicates patients may regain a significant portion after a year of stopping the medication, because their normal hunger resume.
To be carrying excess weight increases your risk for experiencing health problems, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.
Excess weight affects people in every country and was associated with millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
