Less than 10% of people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it issues its first guidance on the drugs.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with thorough and ongoing treatment," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are major barriers to widespread availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing significant body mass, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Even in the current most favorable case, the supply of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The advice urges governments and firms to expand availability, by measures including licensing agreements.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Function
The injections mimick a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase satiety so users reduce food intake.
People typically begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Evidence suggests people may regain a significant portion a year later of stopping the treatment, because their usual appetite come back.
To be above a healthy weight elevates your chance for developing diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in all nations and was responsible for over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
