Under one in 10 people that would benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it publishes its first recommendations on the medications.
With over a billion people worldwide now obese, it is urging broader and more equitable availability to these injectable treatments.
According to forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidelines recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with holistic and continuous support," stated its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key hurdles to broad availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial weight, says the agency.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Even under the current most optimistic case, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, according to the WHO.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to widen access, through measures such as patent sharing.
A patent on semaglutide – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Injections Work
The injections mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.
Individuals typically see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the weekly injections.
Studies indicates patients may see weight return after a year of halting the treatment, because their usual appetite come back.
To be carrying excess weight raises your chance for experiencing medical conditions, like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
