Less than 10% of people who could benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the World Health Organization as it publishes its inaugural advice on the drugs.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Based on projections, over two billion could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with comprehensive and ongoing support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are significant barriers to widespread access to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the current most favorable case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The advice encourages nations and manufacturers to widen availability, by approaches like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and boost satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals commonly begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Research points to patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their normal appetite come back.
Being overweight or obese raises your likelihood for developing medical conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in every country and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
