Less than 10% of individuals that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it publishes its initial recommendations on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is urging increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
Per forecasts, over two billion could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidance affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and continuous care," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are key obstacles to widespread access to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even in the present most optimistic outlook, the supply of these medications might only reach approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline encourages countries and companies to widen availability, via strategies such as voluntary licensing.
A patent on semaglutide – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Work
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Evidence indicates users may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the drug, as their normal appetite resume.
To be above a healthy weight increases your chance for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
