Less than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it releases its first recommendations on the drugs.
Given over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, more than two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines affirms that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be managed with holistic and continuous support," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to universal access to the injections that can aid individuals in losing significant body mass, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Even under the present most favorable scenario, the manufacturing of these medications would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The guideline urges countries and companies to widen access, by measures like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so users eat less.
People commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests patients may see weight return within a year of halting the medication, as their normal appetite resume.
Being above a healthy weight elevates your risk for contracting diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
