Less than one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it releases its initial guidance on the therapies.
Considering over a billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is calling for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with comprehensive and ongoing care," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant obstacles to universal availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, explains the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even in the present best projected case, the production of these medications might only reach about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The advice urges countries and companies to increase access, via measures including voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Operate
The injections mimick a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
People typically begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Studies indicates people may regain a significant portion within a year of discontinuing the treatment, as their usual appetite resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your chance for developing health problems, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity affects people in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
