Fewer than 10% of individuals who could benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy have access to them, caution the global health agency as it publishes its first guidance on the drugs.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
According to estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with thorough and lifelong support," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are key barriers to universal access to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing significant weight, says the body.
Skinny Jab Scarcity
Despite the present most optimistic outlook, the supply of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to widen availability, via measures including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Work
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to slow digestion, curb appetite and increase satiety so people consume fewer calories.
People commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Research indicates patients may regain a significant portion after a year of stopping the drug, because their usual appetite return.
To be above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for contracting health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
Obesity concerns individuals in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.