Fewer than 10% of individuals that would benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it releases its initial recommendations on the drugs.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with thorough and continuous treatment," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to universal access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, explains the agency.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the present most favorable scenario, the production of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to widen access, by approaches including licensing agreements.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Work
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence indicates patients may put most of the weight back on within a year of stopping the treatment, when their typical hunger resume.
To be overweight or obese increases your likelihood for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
