Less than a tenth of people that would benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its first recommendations on the drugs.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
According to forecasts, more than two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and continuous support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are key obstacles to universal availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, says the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the current most favorable scenario, the supply of such drugs could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to widen availability, through measures such as voluntary licensing.
A patent on semaglutide – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
These medications replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and boost feelings of fullness so users consume fewer calories.
Patients usually begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research indicates patients may see weight return a year later of stopping the drug, as their typical hunger return.
To be carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for developing diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and certain cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
