Fewer than one in 10 people that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its initial advice on the therapies.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now living with obesity, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on estimates, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidelines affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with comprehensive and ongoing treatment," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can help people shift significant weight, says the body.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even in the current most optimistic case, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to widen availability, through strategies like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the primary component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Operate
GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase satiety so users consume fewer calories.
People commonly begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests people may see weight return a year later of halting the medication, because their normal food cravings return.
Being carrying excess weight raises your chance for experiencing health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was linked to 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
