Under 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it releases its initial guidance on the drugs.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
Per forecasts, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with holistic and ongoing care," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are major hurdles to widespread availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable weight, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even in the current most optimistic outlook, the manufacturing of such drugs could only cover approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The guideline calls on governments and firms to widen availability, by strategies like voluntary licensing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Function
These medications replicate a biological compound to slow digestion, curb appetite and enhance the sense of being full so individuals consume fewer calories.
People commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Research suggests users may put most of the weight back on a year later of discontinuing the treatment, when their usual hunger resume.
Being above a healthy weight raises your chance for experiencing health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity affects people in every country and was linked to millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
