Less than one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy have access to them, caution the WHO as it releases its first advice on the medications.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidance affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with holistic and lifelong treatment," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to widespread access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing significant body mass, says the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Despite the current most favorable case, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies might only reach about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of those who need them, according to the health organization.
The guideline encourages governments and firms to increase access, via measures like voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in several nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
The injections replicate a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so people consume fewer calories.
Patients typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Evidence suggests users may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the medication, as their usual appetite resume.
To be carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for experiencing diseases, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight affects people in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
