Under one in 10 people eligible to benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy can access them, caution the WHO as it publishes its first guidance on the drugs.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and ongoing treatment," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are significant hurdles to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing significant weight, notes the body.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the present most optimistic scenario, the supply of these medications might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The advice urges countries and companies to increase access, through approaches like voluntary licensing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the main ingredient of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Work
GLP-1 drugs replicate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
People typically see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Studies points to people may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their normal appetite resume.
Being above a healthy weight raises your chance for experiencing diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Obesity impacts individuals in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
