Under one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, states the global health agency as it publishes its initial recommendations on the therapies.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to projections, over two billion could be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidance recognises that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with holistic and continuous care," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are key hurdles to broad access to the injections that can help people shift significant body mass, says the organization.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Despite the present most favorable case, the production of such drugs might only reach approximately 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, according to the health organization.
The guideline encourages countries and companies to expand availability, via strategies such as licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Work
The injections imitate a natural hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and boost feelings of fullness so people eat less.
Individuals usually see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research suggests people may see weight return a year later of halting the drug, as their usual appetite resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your chance for developing health problems, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some malignancies.
Excess weight concerns people in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
