World Health Organization Raises Warning Over Severe Lack of Weight-Loss Injections
Fewer than a tenth of people that would benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it issues its inaugural guidance on the drugs.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 individuals worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.
Per estimates, more than two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be treated with thorough and lifelong support," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and distribution challenges are major barriers to broad access to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Despite the present best projected scenario, the manufacturing of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The guideline encourages nations and manufacturers to expand access, via measures such as licensing agreements.
A patent on a key compound – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Function
GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase the sense of being full so users eat less.
Patients usually start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Evidence points to people may regain a significant portion within a year of stopping the medication, as their typical food cravings come back.
Being overweight or obese elevates your likelihood for contracting diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
