World Health Organization Sounds Alert Over Critical Lack of Weight-Loss Medications

Less than one in 10 individuals that would benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it publishes its first recommendations on the medications.

Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer access to these injectable treatments.

Based on forecasts, over two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.

"Our new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with thorough and lifelong treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Significant expense, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are major hurdles to broad availability to the jabs that can help people shift considerable weight, says the body.

GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis

Despite the present best projected outlook, the production of these medications might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.

The recommendation urges governments and firms to increase access, by strategies such as licensing agreements.

A patent on the active ingredient – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.

The Way Obesity Drugs Operate

GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and increase the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.

Patients commonly start to lose weight within a few weeks of beginning the regular doses.

Studies suggests patients may put most of the weight back on within a year of discontinuing the drug, because their usual hunger come back.

To be overweight or obese elevates your risk for developing medical conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific malignancies.

Obesity affects people in all nations and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.