Fewer than one in 10 patients who could benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy can access them, states the World Health Organization as it releases its initial recommendations on the drugs.
Considering in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.
According to estimates, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines affirms that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with comprehensive and continuous support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key barriers to broad availability to the injections that can help people shift considerable body mass, notes the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Even under the current most favorable scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for about 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, according to the health organization.
The advice urges governments and firms to widen availability, via approaches including patent sharing.
A patent on a key compound – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Function
GLP-1 drugs imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and boost satiety so individuals consume fewer calories.
People typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Research points to people may see weight return within a year of halting the medication, as their normal hunger return.
To be overweight or obese increases your chance for contracting health problems, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Obesity affects people in countries worldwide and was linked to millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
