Under 10% of people that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy are able to get them, states the World Health Organization as it publishes its first guidance on the medications.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be managed with thorough and continuous support," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are major obstacles to universal availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable body mass, notes the agency.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the current most favorable scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation urges governments and firms to widen availability, by strategies including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Work
These medications imitate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance feelings of fullness so individuals eat less.
Patients commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Studies points to users may put most of the weight back on a year later of discontinuing the drug, because their typical food cravings come back.
Being carrying excess weight increases your risk for experiencing health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in all nations and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
