Under a tenth of people who could benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy can access them, caution the World Health Organization as it publishes its inaugural guidance on the medications.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidelines affirms that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and continuous care," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key barriers to universal access to the treatments that can help people shift significant weight, notes the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even in the current best projected outlook, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies might only reach approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.
The advice encourages governments and firms to widen access, by approaches like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Injections Operate
These medications replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so individuals eat less.
Individuals typically begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to patients may regain a significant portion within a year of stopping the drug, because their typical food cravings return.
To be carrying excess weight raises your chance for experiencing health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity affects individuals in all nations and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
