Fewer than a tenth of people eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the World Health Organization as it releases its first guidance on the therapies.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
According to forecasts, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidance recognises that obesity is a long-term condition that can be treated with comprehensive and lifelong treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant obstacles to broad availability to the jabs that can help people shift significant weight, explains the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even under the present best projected case, the supply of such drugs would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The recommendation urges governments and firms to increase availability, through strategies including licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Function
GLP-1 drugs mimick a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and boost satiety so individuals consume fewer calories.
People commonly see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research indicates users may see weight return a year later of halting the drug, when their normal food cravings come back.
To be overweight or obese increases your likelihood for contracting health problems, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Excess weight impacts people in countries worldwide and was associated with over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
