Less than a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the WHO as it releases its first guidance on the medications.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Per forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and continuous care," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to universal access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Despite the present most optimistic scenario, the manufacturing of such drugs could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to widen availability, via measures like licensing agreements.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary component of a leading brand – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Function
These medications replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness so users eat less.
People usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Studies points to patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the drug, as their normal hunger return.
Being overweight or obese raises your chance for experiencing health problems, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
