Under one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it releases its initial guidance on the therapies.
Given over a billion people worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Per forecasts, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with thorough and lifelong support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to broad availability to the treatments that can help people shift substantial body mass, says the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the current most optimistic case, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the WHO.
The advice urges countries and companies to increase access, via approaches like patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
Patients typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Research suggests patients may regain a significant portion a year later of halting the treatment, as their usual food cravings come back.
Being above a healthy weight increases your risk for contracting medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
