Less than one in 10 patients who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its inaugural advice on the medications.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and ongoing treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are key hurdles to universal availability to the treatments that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the current most optimistic outlook, the supply of such drugs might only reach about 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the WHO.
The advice encourages countries and companies to increase access, through measures including voluntary licensing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Function
The injections mimick a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients typically start to lose weight after several weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research suggests patients may regain a significant portion a year later of stopping the treatment, as their normal food cravings return.
Being carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for experiencing diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Obesity impacts individuals in all nations and was associated with millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
