Fewer than one in 10 people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it issues its first advice on the therapies.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Per forecasts, over two billion will be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with thorough and lifelong treatment," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are key barriers to universal availability to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing significant weight, says the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present best projected case, the production of such drugs could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.
The recommendation urges countries and companies to expand access, via approaches like licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Function
The injections imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so users eat less.
People commonly see weight reduction within a few weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Studies points to patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the drug, as their usual appetite return.
To be above a healthy weight raises your chance for contracting health problems, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Obesity concerns people in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
