Under a tenth of patients who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it publishes its first recommendations on the medications.
Considering over a billion people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The new guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with thorough and continuous support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are significant obstacles to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, says the agency.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even under the present most optimistic case, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The advice calls on governments and firms to widen availability, through strategies such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Operate
The injections replicate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and boost feelings of fullness so individuals eat less.
People commonly begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to users may see weight return a year later of discontinuing the medication, as their usual appetite return.
Being above a healthy weight raises your risk for experiencing health problems, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
