Fewer than 10% of patients eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, states the WHO as it releases its inaugural recommendations on the therapies.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide currently obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to forecasts, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The new guidance recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and continuous care," remarked its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to broad availability to the injections that can help people shift considerable body mass, explains the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Shortage
Despite the current best projected outlook, the manufacturing of these medications could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the health organization.
The guideline calls on governments and firms to increase availability, via strategies including patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Drugs Work
These medications mimick a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance satiety so users consume fewer calories.
People typically begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Research points to users may put most of the weight back on within a year of stopping the drug, as their typical hunger resume.
Being carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for developing diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and some cancers.
Excess weight impacts people in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
