Less than one in 10 individuals who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the global health agency as it releases its first guidance on the medications.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and lifelong support," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, says the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Despite the current most optimistic outlook, the supply of such drugs might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of those who need them, according to the WHO.
The recommendation encourages countries and companies to increase access, through measures such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs mimick a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance feelings of fullness so individuals eat less.
Individuals commonly start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Research points to patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of stopping the drug, because their normal hunger return.
Being above a healthy weight raises your chance for contracting health problems, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity impacts people in all nations and was associated with 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.