Under 10% of people that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it issues its first guidance on the drugs.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with comprehensive and lifelong care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to universal availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing considerable weight, explains the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Despite the current most favorable case, the manufacturing of these medications could only cover around 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The guideline urges countries and companies to expand access, through measures like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Work
GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so people consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence suggests users may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the medication, because their normal hunger come back.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your risk for developing medical conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in every country and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
