Less than 10% of people that would benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy can access them, states the WHO as it issues its inaugural guidance on the drugs.
Given more than one billion people worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our new guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with holistic and continuous care," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are major hurdles to universal availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable weight, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present best projected case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The advice urges governments and firms to expand access, via strategies such as voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of a leading brand – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Work
The injections replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and boost satiety so users eat less.
People commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Evidence indicates patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the treatment, because their typical appetite resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your chance for experiencing diseases, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight impacts people in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
