Fewer than 10% of patients that would benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it releases its inaugural guidance on the therapies.
Given over a billion people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and lifelong care," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to widespread availability to the jabs that can help people shift substantial body mass, notes the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even in the current best projected case, the supply of these medications might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation urges governments and firms to expand access, through approaches like patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in several nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Operate
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and boost satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Studies indicates patients may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the treatment, as their normal food cravings resume.
To be overweight or obese raises your risk for contracting health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in every country and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
