The Global Health Body Issues Warning Over Severe Scarcity of Weight-Loss Medications

Less than 10% of patients who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it releases its first recommendations on the medications.

Given over a billion people worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.

According to estimates, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.

"The latest guidance acknowledges that obesity is a long-term condition that can be treated with thorough and continuous care," remarked WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

High costs, insufficient output, and distribution challenges are key obstacles to universal access to the jabs that can help people shift considerable body mass, says the body.

Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis

Even in the current most favorable scenario, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.

The advice calls on countries and companies to expand availability, through approaches like patent sharing.

The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main component of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.

How Obesity Jabs Operate

The injections replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance the sense of being full so people eat less.

People commonly see weight reduction after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.

Evidence points to users may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the medication, because their typical appetite come back.

Being overweight or obese elevates your chance for contracting medical conditions, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and certain malignancies.

Obesity concerns individuals in every country and was linked to 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.