Under 10% of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it publishes its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, more than two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with comprehensive and lifelong care," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, says the agency.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Despite the present best projected case, the production of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to widen availability, by strategies including voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in several nations in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Work
The injections imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
People commonly see weight reduction within a few weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research suggests people may regain a significant portion within a year of halting the drug, as their typical hunger come back.
Being carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for experiencing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
