Less than one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it issues its initial recommendations on the drugs.
With more than one billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and ongoing support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are major obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the body.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Despite the current best projected scenario, the supply of these medications would only suffice for around 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The guideline calls on governments and firms to widen access, through approaches including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in several nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and boost satiety so individuals consume fewer calories.
People usually begin shedding pounds after several weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Studies points to patients may put most of the weight back on after a year of halting the treatment, because their normal hunger resume.
To be above a healthy weight raises your chance for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in all nations and was linked to millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
