Less than 10% of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy can access them, states the WHO as it publishes its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
Given over a billion people worldwide currently obese, it is urging increased and just availability to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidance recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with thorough and continuous treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key obstacles to universal access to the jabs that can help people shift significant body mass, explains the agency.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even under the present most favorable scenario, the manufacturing of these medications would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The recommendation urges countries and companies to increase access, by measures like voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so users eat less.
Individuals commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Research suggests people may regain a significant portion a year later of halting the drug, because their typical appetite return.
To be overweight or obese increases your likelihood for developing medical conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity concerns people in every country and was linked to millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
