WHO Issues Alert Over Severe Scarcity of Weight-Loss Injections

Under 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it publishes its inaugural recommendations on the medications.

With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now living with obesity, it is calling for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.

According to forecasts, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.

"The latest guidelines affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with holistic and ongoing care," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Significant expense, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to universal access to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing substantial weight, explains the body.

GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity

Even under the current best projected outlook, the supply of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.

The advice calls on countries and companies to expand availability, by measures like licensing agreements.

The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.

The Way Obesity Injections Operate

The injections mimick a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase satiety so individuals eat less.

Individuals usually start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.

Evidence points to people may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the drug, when their usual food cravings come back.

Being above a healthy weight elevates your chance for contracting diseases, like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.

Obesity impacts people in every country and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.