Less than 10% of patients that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy have access to them, states the WHO as it publishes its initial recommendations on the drugs.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be managed with holistic and ongoing treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to broad access to the jabs that can help people shift substantial weight, explains the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even in the present best projected outlook, the production of such drugs might only reach approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The advice calls on countries and companies to widen access, through approaches like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals commonly start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to people may see weight return within a year of stopping the drug, because their usual hunger come back.
To be carrying excess weight raises your chance for contracting diseases, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity affects individuals in every country and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
