Under a tenth of patients that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it issues its first advice on the drugs.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Per projections, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and ongoing care," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are key obstacles to widespread access to the jabs that can help people shift significant body mass, says the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the present most optimistic scenario, the production of such drugs could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline encourages countries and companies to expand access, through measures like patent sharing.
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 Jabs Work
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and increase satiety so people reduce food intake.
Individuals usually see weight reduction after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence indicates patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the medication, when their normal hunger resume.
To be above a healthy weight increases your chance for developing diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some cancers.
Excess weight concerns people in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
