Under 10% of people who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it releases its initial guidance on the medications.
Considering over a billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The new guidance acknowledges that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with thorough and lifelong support," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are significant obstacles to broad access to the injections that can help people shift substantial body mass, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even under the current best projected case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.
The advice calls on nations and manufacturers to increase availability, by measures including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so people eat less.
Individuals usually begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Evidence suggests users may see weight return after a year of discontinuing the drug, because their typical appetite resume.
To be carrying excess weight raises your risk for contracting health problems, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
