Fewer than one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it issues its inaugural guidance on the drugs.
With over a billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
According to forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance affirms that obesity is a long-term condition that can be managed with thorough and ongoing care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are major barriers to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, notes the organization.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Despite the present most favorable outlook, the supply of these medications would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline urges nations and manufacturers to increase access, by approaches including voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple countries in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so people eat less.
Patients commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Studies suggests users may see weight return within a year of halting the medication, as their normal food cravings return.
Being overweight or obese increases your likelihood for developing health problems, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Obesity impacts individuals in every country and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
