Less than one in 10 individuals who could benefit from weight-loss injections including Wegovy are able to get them, caution the WHO as it issues its inaugural guidance on the medications.
With more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is urging increased and just availability to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The latest guidelines recognises that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be managed with comprehensive and ongoing support," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are major obstacles to widespread availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing considerable body mass, says the body.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the present most favorable case, the manufacturing of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, per the WHO.
The guideline urges governments and firms to widen access, through approaches such as patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on a key compound – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Operate
These medications mimick a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, reduce hunger and enhance the sense of being full so individuals eat less.
People typically start to lose weight within a few weeks of starting on the regular doses.
Research suggests people may see weight return within a year of discontinuing the treatment, when their usual appetite resume.
To be overweight or obese raises your likelihood for contracting health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and certain cancers.
Obesity affects individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
