Less than 10% of patients that would benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy are able to get them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its first guidance on the medications.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 are projected to be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and continuous treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal access to the jabs that can help people shift significant weight, says the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even under the present best projected scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.
The advice encourages countries and companies to widen availability, through approaches such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Injections Operate
The injections mimick a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and increase the sense of being full so individuals consume fewer calories.
Patients usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Research indicates people may see weight return after a year of halting the drug, when their typical appetite resume.
Being above a healthy weight increases your chance for contracting health problems, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity affects individuals in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
