Fewer than a tenth of patients who could benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy can access them, caution the global health agency as it issues its inaugural recommendations on the medications.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Per forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with holistic and ongoing treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are key barriers to universal access to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, explains the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the present most favorable case, the manufacturing of such drugs might only reach approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the WHO.
The advice calls on countries and companies to widen availability, via approaches like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Operate
These medications replicate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so users reduce food intake.
People commonly see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to patients may see weight return after a year of halting the medication, when their typical hunger come back.
To be above a healthy weight increases your risk for developing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
