Less than one in 10 individuals that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy can access them, warns the World Health Organization as it issues its first recommendations on the medications.
With more than one billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is urging broader and more equitable access to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, over two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidance affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be managed with comprehensive and ongoing treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are significant barriers to broad availability to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing significant body mass, notes the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Despite the present most optimistic case, the production of such drugs would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The advice encourages nations and manufacturers to increase access, through approaches including voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the core component of the drug Wegovy – is due to expire in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Function
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and boost the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
Patients typically see weight reduction within a few weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research indicates people may put most of the weight back on within a year of halting the drug, as their normal food cravings return.
To be overweight or obese raises your risk for contracting diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight affects people in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
