World Health Organization Issues Alert Over Acute Shortage of Obesity Medications
Fewer than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it releases its inaugural guidance on the medications.
With over a billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable access to these injectable treatments.
According to forecasts, more than two billion are projected to be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and lifelong care," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are key hurdles to universal access to the jabs that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, notes the agency.
Weight-Loss Drug Scarcity
Even in the current most optimistic outlook, the production of GLP-1 therapies would only suffice for around 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The advice calls on nations and manufacturers to increase availability, by strategies like patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of a leading brand – is scheduled to end in several nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Function
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so people reduce food intake.
Individuals typically start to lose weight within a few weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research indicates users may see weight return a year later of halting the medication, because their typical hunger resume.
Being above a healthy weight elevates your chance for contracting medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns people in countries worldwide and was linked to millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
