Fewer than 10% of people that would benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it issues its first recommendations on the drugs.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with comprehensive and lifelong treatment," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to universal availability to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing significant body mass, explains the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the current most favorable scenario, the supply of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The recommendation encourages countries and companies to expand availability, by measures including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Function
The injections mimick a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and boost feelings of fullness so people reduce food intake.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Studies suggests people may put most of the weight back on within a year of stopping the medication, when their usual hunger come back.
Being carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for developing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity impacts people in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
