Fewer than 10% of people that would benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy have access to them, caution the WHO as it releases its inaugural guidance on the therapies.
Given in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, over two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with thorough and ongoing care," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are major hurdles to universal access to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Despite the current most favorable case, the production of such drugs might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The advice urges countries and companies to expand availability, via strategies such as voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a natural hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so people eat less.
Individuals typically see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence indicates users may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the drug, as their normal food cravings return.
To be carrying excess weight increases your risk for experiencing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity affects people in every country and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
