Fewer than one in 10 patients that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, caution the World Health Organization as it issues its first recommendations on the drugs.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
According to estimates, over two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance affirms that obesity is a long-term condition that can be addressed with holistic and ongoing treatment," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are significant obstacles to widespread availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing substantial body mass, notes the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Despite the current best projected outlook, the supply of such drugs would only suffice for around 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, according to the health organization.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to widen access, by approaches including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Function
These medications imitate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance the sense of being full so users reduce food intake.
Patients typically begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Evidence points to people may regain a significant portion after a year of stopping the treatment, as their usual appetite resume.
To be overweight or obese increases your chance for experiencing health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
