Under 10% of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy are able to get them, states the World Health Organization as it releases its initial advice on the drugs.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
Per projections, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that obesity is a long-term condition that can be treated with holistic and ongoing care," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are significant hurdles to widespread access to the treatments that can help people shift substantial body mass, explains the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the present best projected scenario, the production of these medications might only reach approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the WHO.
The guideline encourages countries and companies to expand access, by approaches such as licensing agreements.
A patent on semaglutide – the primary component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Injections Function
These medications replicate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so individuals reduce food intake.
Individuals commonly start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Research points to users may see weight return a year later of stopping the treatment, when their typical food cravings resume.
Being carrying excess weight increases your chance for contracting medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight impacts people in countries worldwide and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
