Fewer than a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy have access to them, states the World Health Organization as it issues its first recommendations on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to these injectable treatments.
According to projections, more than two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with comprehensive and lifelong support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are significant hurdles to universal availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing considerable weight, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the current most optimistic outlook, the supply of these medications might only reach approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, according to the health organization.
The guideline urges governments and firms to increase access, by approaches such as patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
These medications imitate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and boost the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
Patients typically start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Research suggests users may see weight return a year later of halting the treatment, when their typical food cravings resume.
Being overweight or obese raises your likelihood for contracting health problems, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in every country and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
