Less than one in 10 patients who could benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy are able to get them, states the global health agency as it publishes its first recommendations on the drugs.
Considering over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and continuous care," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are key obstacles to broad availability to the injections that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, explains the body.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Even under the current most favorable case, the supply of such drugs might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, per the WHO.
The guideline encourages governments and firms to expand availability, through approaches such as patent sharing.
A patent on the active ingredient – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.
How Weight-Loss Jabs Operate
These medications imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase the sense of being full so people eat less.
Patients commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Research suggests people may put most of the weight back on after a year of discontinuing the drug, as their usual appetite come back.
Being above a healthy weight raises your chance for developing diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and some cancers.
Obesity impacts people in all nations and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
