Fewer than one in 10 individuals who could benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it publishes its first advice on the therapies.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide currently obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with holistic and continuous care," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to universal access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the current best projected case, the manufacturing of such drugs could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to widen availability, by strategies like licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the main ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Function
The injections mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so individuals eat less.
Individuals usually see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research points to patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of discontinuing the treatment, as their typical appetite come back.
Being above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for contracting health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
