Under one in 10 individuals who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it releases its first advice on the therapies.
With over a billion people worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for increased and just availability to these injectable treatments.
According to forecasts, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be managed with comprehensive and continuous treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key obstacles to universal availability to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing considerable weight, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present most favorable case, the supply of such drugs could only cover about 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to increase availability, by measures such as licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
These medications replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.
People usually see weight reduction in the initial weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to patients may see weight return after a year of stopping the drug, as their usual food cravings resume.
To be overweight or obese increases your chance for developing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.
Excess weight affects individuals in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.