Under 10% of people that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy can access them, caution the WHO as it issues its inaugural guidance on the medications.
Given more than one billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and continuous treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key barriers to universal availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable weight, says the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Even in the present best projected case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, according to the health organization.
The advice encourages nations and manufacturers to expand availability, via measures like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
The injections imitate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients usually start to lose weight after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Studies suggests people may put most of the weight back on within a year of stopping the medication, as their normal hunger resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your chance for contracting diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
