Less than 10% of people that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy can access them, caution the global health agency as it issues its initial advice on the medications.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is advocating for increased and just availability to these injectable treatments.
Based on projections, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidance recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with holistic and lifelong care," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are major barriers to universal access to the injections that can help people shift considerable weight, notes the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even in the present most optimistic outlook, the production of these medications would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, according to the health organization.
The guideline urges governments and firms to widen access, through strategies like licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the core component of a leading brand – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Function
These medications replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and increase satiety so people reduce food intake.
Individuals typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Evidence points to users may regain a significant portion within a year of stopping the treatment, because their normal food cravings resume.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your risk for developing health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in all nations and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
