Under a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy can access them, caution the global health agency as it issues its inaugural advice on the drugs.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
Based on estimates, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidelines acknowledges that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and ongoing treatment," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, explains the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Even in the present best projected case, the supply of these medications might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline calls on governments and firms to expand access, by measures including voluntary licensing.
A patent on a key compound – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
GLP-1 drugs replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Research indicates patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the treatment, when their usual hunger come back.
To be overweight or obese raises your likelihood for experiencing medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity affects people in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
