Fewer than a tenth of people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it publishes its initial guidance on the drugs.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to projections, over two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidance recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and lifelong treatment," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are major hurdles to universal availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, explains the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the present most optimistic case, the supply of such drugs might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.
The advice encourages countries and companies to widen availability, via measures such as patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Function
These medications replicate a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and boost feelings of fullness so individuals reduce food intake.
People usually begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Studies suggests people may see weight return a year later of discontinuing the treatment, when their usual food cravings return.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your risk for experiencing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
