Less than 10% of patients that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it publishes its first advice on the drugs.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer availability to this class of drugs.
According to projections, more than two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and ongoing treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are major hurdles to widespread availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, says the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even in the current most favorable case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The advice calls on governments and firms to widen access, by strategies such as patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Work
The injections replicate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and boost satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients commonly see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to patients may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the treatment, because their typical hunger return.
To be above a healthy weight elevates your chance for experiencing medical conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some malignancies.
Obesity affects people in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
