Fewer than 10% of people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it issues its inaugural advice on the therapies.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Per estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with thorough and lifelong treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant barriers to widespread availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, notes the body.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the present most optimistic outlook, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges governments and firms to increase availability, by measures like licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Operate
These medications replicate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and enhance satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Evidence indicates patients may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the drug, when their usual hunger resume.
To be overweight or obese increases your risk for developing medical conditions, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Obesity affects people in all nations and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
