WHO Issues Warning Over Critical Scarcity of Weight-Loss Injections
Fewer than one in 10 patients who could benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, states the World Health Organization as it publishes its inaugural advice on the therapies.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Based on estimates, more than two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with thorough and ongoing support," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant hurdles to widespread access to the treatments that can help people shift significant weight, explains the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the present best projected case, the production of these medications would only suffice for around 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, according to the WHO.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to widen access, through strategies including voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Work
The injections imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and boost the sense of being full so people eat less.
People typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Research indicates users may regain a significant portion after a year of stopping the medication, when their usual hunger resume.
To be above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for experiencing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Obesity impacts people in every country and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
