Less than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the World Health Organization as it releases its initial advice on the therapies.
With over a billion people worldwide currently obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines recognises that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be managed with holistic and lifelong treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant obstacles to widespread availability to the injections that can help people shift substantial body mass, explains the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the current most optimistic case, the production of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline urges countries and companies to increase access, by approaches like voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Work
These medications imitate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so people consume fewer calories.
People usually see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Evidence points to people may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their typical food cravings return.
Being carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for contracting health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight impacts individuals in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
