Less than 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, states the World Health Organization as it issues its initial guidance on the therapies.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to these injectable treatments.
Based on forecasts, over two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and ongoing care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are key obstacles to universal availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable weight, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the current best projected scenario, the supply of GLP-1 therapies might only reach around 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The recommendation urges countries and companies to widen access, by approaches such as voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Function
The injections imitate a biological compound to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so people reduce food intake.
Individuals typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Studies indicates users may regain a significant portion after a year of halting the medication, when their normal appetite come back.
To be overweight or obese raises your risk for experiencing diseases, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was associated with millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
