Under a tenth of individuals eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it releases its inaugural advice on the medications.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now living with obesity, it is urging increased and just availability to GLP-1 medication.
Based on estimates, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with holistic and ongoing care," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant hurdles to universal availability to the injections that can help people shift substantial weight, explains the agency.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even under the present most optimistic case, the supply of such drugs could only cover about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The advice calls on countries and companies to increase availability, via strategies like patent sharing.
A patent on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Operate
The injections mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and boost the sense of being full so individuals eat less.
Individuals typically see weight reduction after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Research indicates patients may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the drug, because their normal hunger return.
Being overweight or obese raises your chance for experiencing medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
