Under a tenth of people who could benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it publishes its inaugural guidance on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
Per projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and lifelong treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are significant hurdles to universal availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing substantial weight, says the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present most optimistic scenario, the supply of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation calls on countries and companies to increase availability, through measures such as licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Work
GLP-1 drugs mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and boost satiety so users eat less.
Patients typically see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research points to people may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the drug, as their typical appetite come back.
To be above a healthy weight raises your chance for experiencing diseases, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Obesity impacts people in countries worldwide and was associated with 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
