Fewer than a tenth of patients that would benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it releases its first guidance on the drugs.
With over a billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging increased and just availability to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, over two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and continuous treatment," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing substantial weight, says the organization.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even under the present most favorable case, the production of GLP-1 therapies might only reach approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to widen access, by strategies like patent sharing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Operate
These medications imitate a biological compound to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so users eat less.
People commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Studies suggests patients may regain a significant portion after a year of halting the treatment, as their typical appetite return.
To be carrying excess weight raises your risk for developing health problems, like diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity concerns individuals in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
