Under a tenth of individuals eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it issues its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
Given more than one billion people worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Per forecasts, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with holistic and lifelong treatment," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to widespread availability to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing significant body mass, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present most optimistic case, the supply of these medications could only cover about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The recommendation calls on governments and firms to increase availability, via approaches like patent sharing.
A patent on semaglutide – the core ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Function
The injections imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase satiety so users eat less.
Patients usually begin shedding pounds after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests people may see weight return a year later of stopping the drug, because their typical hunger come back.
To be overweight or obese increases your risk for experiencing medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Obesity impacts people in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
