WHO Sounds Warning Over Severe Lack of Obesity Injections
Less than one in 10 patients who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy have access to them, states the WHO as it publishes its first guidance on the medications.
With more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines acknowledges that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with holistic and lifelong treatment," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are significant barriers to widespread availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing significant body mass, notes the organization.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Even under the present most optimistic case, the manufacturing of these medications could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization.
The advice urges countries and companies to expand access, via strategies such as voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the core ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Function
The injections imitate a biological compound to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and boost satiety so people eat less.
People usually begin shedding pounds within a few weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence points to people may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the medication, because their typical hunger resume.
Being overweight or obese elevates your chance for contracting medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was linked to over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
