Under 10% of people that would benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it issues its inaugural advice on the therapies.
Given more than one billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for increased and just availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on projections, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with comprehensive and lifelong care," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, says the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Despite the present most favorable outlook, the supply of such drugs could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to increase access, via approaches including voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the core ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
The injections imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so people eat less.
Patients usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research suggests patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the drug, as their normal food cravings come back.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your likelihood for experiencing diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in every country and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
