Under one in 10 people that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it issues its inaugural recommendations on the medications.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with holistic and continuous care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are major barriers to broad availability to the injections that can help people shift considerable body mass, says the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even under the current most optimistic outlook, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The recommendation urges governments and firms to increase availability, through strategies like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Work
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and enhance the sense of being full so users reduce food intake.
Patients typically begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Evidence points to people may see weight return within a year of stopping the treatment, because their usual appetite resume.
To be above a healthy weight elevates your likelihood for contracting medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight impacts people in every country and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
