Fewer than 10% of patients eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it issues its inaugural guidance on the medications.
Given in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
According to forecasts, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and ongoing support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are key hurdles to broad availability to the injections that can help people shift substantial weight, notes the agency.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even under the present best projected scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to widen availability, by measures such as patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the primary ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Operate
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and boost satiety so people reduce food intake.
People commonly start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Research points to patients may regain a significant portion within a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their usual appetite return.
Being carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for developing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Obesity impacts individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
