Less than a tenth of people eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it releases its first advice on the drugs.
With more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is calling for increased and just availability to GLP-1 medication.
According to forecasts, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidelines recognises that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with comprehensive and ongoing support," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial body mass, notes the organization.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the present best projected outlook, the manufacturing of such drugs would only suffice for approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to expand availability, via measures such as licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in multiple countries in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Function
These medications imitate a natural hormone to slow digestion, suppress the appetite and boost the sense of being full so users consume fewer calories.
People commonly begin shedding pounds in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Studies suggests users may see weight return within a year of stopping the drug, when their usual appetite return.
Being overweight or obese increases your chance for experiencing medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight impacts people in countries worldwide and was linked to 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
