The Global Health Body Raises Warning Over Critical Scarcity of Weight-Loss Injections
Fewer than one in 10 individuals that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial advice on the medications.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
Per projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidance acknowledges that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and lifelong care," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are significant obstacles to widespread access to the jabs that can help people shift considerable body mass, notes the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Even under the present most favorable case, the manufacturing of these medications might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to increase access, by measures like patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Work
The injections replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance satiety so individuals consume fewer calories.
People typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Studies indicates people may regain a significant portion a year later of discontinuing the drug, when their typical appetite resume.
Being above a healthy weight increases your chance for developing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Obesity concerns people in all nations and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
