Fewer than 10% of people eligible to benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy can access them, states the global health agency as it publishes its initial recommendations on the drugs.
Given more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for increased and just availability to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, more than two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidance affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be addressed with comprehensive and continuous treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are significant hurdles to universal availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, notes the agency.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even in the present most favorable case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The recommendation urges governments and firms to expand access, by approaches such as voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Operate
GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and increase feelings of fullness so users reduce food intake.
Patients usually see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to users may put most of the weight back on within a year of halting the treatment, when their typical food cravings return.
To be above a healthy weight elevates your likelihood for contracting diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity affects people in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
