Under one in 10 individuals who could benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy can access them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its first advice on the therapies.
Given over a billion people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, over two billion could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with thorough and ongoing care," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to broad access to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing considerable weight, says the agency.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even in the present most favorable outlook, the production of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The recommendation encourages countries and companies to increase access, via measures such as licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
The injections mimick a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so individuals eat less.
People usually start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Studies indicates users may put most of the weight back on within a year of halting the drug, because their typical hunger return.
To be above a healthy weight raises your risk for developing medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
