Fewer than 10% of patients eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it issues its inaugural advice on the therapies.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to forecasts, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our new guidance affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and lifelong care," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are major hurdles to broad availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, explains the organization.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even in the present most favorable scenario, the production of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to expand availability, by approaches such as licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Function
The injections imitate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests users may put most of the weight back on after a year of stopping the drug, as their normal food cravings come back.
Being carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight affects people in countries worldwide and was associated with 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
