Less than one in 10 people eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it issues its first guidance on the drugs.
With more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, over two billion will be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidance recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with thorough and lifelong care," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are key hurdles to universal access to the injections that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the current most optimistic scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation encourages governments and firms to increase access, through strategies such as patent sharing.
A patent on semaglutide – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Work
The injections imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
Patients usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Studies points to people may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the treatment, as their normal hunger come back.
Being above a healthy weight elevates your likelihood for contracting diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Obesity impacts individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
