Less than 10% of people eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it issues its inaugural advice on the drugs.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now obese, it is urging increased and just availability to GLP-1 medication.
Based on projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with thorough and lifelong treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to widespread availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing significant weight, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even in the current most favorable scenario, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, as stated by the WHO.
The advice calls on countries and companies to increase access, by measures including licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the core ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Injections Work
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase satiety so individuals consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly start to lose weight within a few weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of stopping the treatment, because their usual hunger come back.
Being overweight or obese increases your risk for developing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Excess weight impacts individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
