Fewer than a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, states the World Health Organization as it releases its initial advice on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is urging broader and more equitable access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, over two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with comprehensive and ongoing treatment," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are significant barriers to widespread access to the jabs that can help people shift significant weight, says the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even under the current best projected outlook, the production of such drugs might only reach approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges countries and companies to widen access, by approaches including patent sharing.
A patent on semaglutide – the core ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Function
These medications mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and increase satiety so users reduce food intake.
Individuals commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Evidence suggests patients may see weight return a year later of discontinuing the drug, as their normal appetite resume.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your chance for experiencing health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
