Less than a tenth of patients that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy are able to get them, warns the World Health Organization as it issues its initial recommendations on the medications.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is urging increased and just availability to this class of drugs.
Based on forecasts, over two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be addressed with holistic and lifelong treatment," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are key barriers to broad availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable body mass, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the present most favorable case, the supply of GLP-1 therapies might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to expand access, by approaches including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the main component of a leading brand – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Drugs Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so individuals eat less.
Individuals usually begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Research points to people may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their usual food cravings resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your risk for experiencing diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Obesity affects individuals in all nations and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
