Less than 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it releases its first advice on the medications.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is calling for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Based on forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The new guidance acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with thorough and ongoing support," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key barriers to universal availability to the injections that can help people shift considerable body mass, explains the organization.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Despite the present best projected scenario, the supply of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The guideline encourages countries and companies to expand availability, by strategies including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Function
The injections replicate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so individuals consume fewer calories.
Patients usually begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to users may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the treatment, because their usual hunger come back.
Being carrying excess weight increases your risk for developing diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.