Under one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial recommendations on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
According to projections, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be managed with comprehensive and continuous treatment," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are major obstacles to broad availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, explains the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Despite the current most optimistic scenario, the supply of such drugs might only reach about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the health organization.
The advice encourages nations and manufacturers to widen availability, through measures including licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of countries in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so users reduce food intake.
People usually start to lose weight after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to people may see weight return after a year of discontinuing the treatment, because their typical hunger return.
Being above a healthy weight raises your likelihood for contracting medical conditions, like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some malignancies.
Obesity impacts individuals in every country and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
