Less than 10% of people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial guidance on the therapies.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide currently living with obesity, it is calling for more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, more than two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and continuous treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are key barriers to broad access to the jabs that can help people shift substantial weight, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even in the current best projected scenario, the manufacturing of these medications might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The advice calls on governments and firms to increase access, by measures such as voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Function
These medications imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals usually see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Research suggests people may regain a significant portion after a year of halting the treatment, as their usual food cravings return.
To be above a healthy weight raises your chance for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
