Under one in 10 individuals that would benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it releases its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidelines recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and lifelong care," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal availability to the injections that can help people shift significant body mass, notes the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Despite the current best projected outlook, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The recommendation urges countries and companies to expand availability, by strategies like voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in multiple countries in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Operate
GLP-1 drugs mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.
Patients usually start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Studies indicates people may see weight return after a year of discontinuing the drug, as their normal appetite resume.
To be carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for developing health problems, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
