Under a tenth of individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, warns the WHO as it releases its first advice on the medications.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Per projections, over two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidance recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with comprehensive and continuous care," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to universal access to the treatments that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the present most favorable case, the production of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to widen availability, via measures such as patent sharing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
The injections replicate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase satiety so users reduce food intake.
Individuals usually start to lose weight after several weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Evidence suggests users may put most of the weight back on a year later of discontinuing the drug, when their usual hunger return.
To be carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for developing health problems, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Obesity affects individuals in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
