Less than a tenth of people that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, states the World Health Organization as it issues its first guidance on the therapies.
With over a billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with comprehensive and continuous treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to universal availability to the injections that can help people shift significant body mass, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even under the current most optimistic scenario, the manufacturing of such drugs would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The recommendation encourages governments and firms to increase access, through approaches like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the core component of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in several nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Work
These medications imitate a body's own hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and increase satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients typically start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Evidence points to people may regain a significant portion a year later of discontinuing the drug, when their usual food cravings come back.
To be above a healthy weight raises your chance for experiencing health problems, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity impacts people in every country and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
