Under one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy have access to them, warns the global health agency as it publishes its inaugural guidance on the drugs.
Given more than one billion people worldwide currently obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer availability to this class of drugs.
According to projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 unless action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and lifelong support," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, insufficient output, and supply-chain constraints are significant barriers to universal availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing significant body mass, notes the body.
Weight-Loss Drug Shortage
Even under the present most favorable case, the production of these medications might only reach around 100 million people – fewer than 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.
The guideline encourages governments and firms to expand access, through strategies including licensing agreements.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.
How Obesity Drugs Work
GLP-1 drugs mimick a biological compound to slow digestion, curb appetite and boost satiety so people eat less.
People commonly see weight reduction in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Evidence indicates patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the medication, because their typical appetite come back.
To be carrying excess weight elevates your chance for developing diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain malignancies.
Excess weight impacts people in countries worldwide and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
