Fewer than one in 10 people that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it releases its inaugural guidance on the medications.
Given more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
Per projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with comprehensive and lifelong treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are major obstacles to widespread access to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, says the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even in the present most favorable scenario, the production of such drugs might only reach around 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, according to the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to expand access, by strategies like licensing agreements.
A patent on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Work
GLP-1 drugs mimick a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence indicates users may see weight return within a year of stopping the medication, because their typical appetite return.
Being carrying excess weight raises your risk for contracting diseases, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity concerns people in countries worldwide and was linked to millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
