WHO Raises Warning Over Severe Lack of Weight-Loss Medications
Under 10% of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it publishes its initial recommendations on the therapies.
Given over a billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
According to forecasts, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with thorough and continuous support," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are significant barriers to broad availability to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing substantial body mass, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the current most favorable case, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, per the health organization.
The guideline urges nations and manufacturers to widen access, by approaches such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to slow digestion, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so people eat less.
Individuals usually begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Research points to people may see weight return after a year of stopping the medication, because their normal hunger resume.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your chance for experiencing medical conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight affects individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
