Less than one in 10 patients who could benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it publishes its first guidance on the therapies.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable availability to GLP-1 medication.
Per forecasts, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The new guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with thorough and continuous support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are major obstacles to widespread availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, notes the organization.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even in the present best projected case, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to increase availability, by measures such as patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
The injections imitate a natural hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and boost satiety so individuals eat less.
Patients commonly see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Studies indicates patients may regain a significant portion after a year of discontinuing the treatment, because their usual appetite come back.
Being above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for developing medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Excess weight affects people in all nations and was associated with 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
