Under one in 10 individuals who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy can access them, caution the global health agency as it issues its first advice on the medications.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our new guidelines recognises that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with holistic and lifelong support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are significant obstacles to broad access to the injections that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the agency.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even under the present most optimistic outlook, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The advice urges governments and firms to expand access, by measures such as licensing agreements.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Function
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so people reduce food intake.
Patients commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research indicates patients may regain a significant portion a year later of discontinuing the drug, as their typical appetite resume.
To be overweight or obese increases your risk for developing diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
