Less than a tenth of individuals who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy can access them, warns the global health agency as it publishes its inaugural advice on the medications.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance acknowledges that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with holistic and continuous support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are key barriers to widespread availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, says the agency.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even in the present most favorable case, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The advice calls on nations and manufacturers to expand availability, through measures such as licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Operate
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance satiety so people reduce food intake.
People typically begin shedding pounds after several weeks of beginning the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of halting the treatment, because their usual hunger come back.
Being carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for developing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.