Under a tenth of patients who could benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, caution the WHO as it issues its first advice on the medications.
Considering more than one billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is calling for more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
Per forecasts, in excess of 2,000,000,000 could be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
"The new guidance affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be managed with comprehensive and lifelong care," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Significant expense, constrained manufacturing, and distribution challenges are key hurdles to universal access to the injections that can help people shift significant body mass, explains the body.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Despite the current most optimistic outlook, the supply of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – less than 10% of the global need, as stated by the WHO.
The advice calls on nations and manufacturers to expand availability, by strategies like patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the core component of a leading brand – is due to expire in several nations in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Operate
The injections replicate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, curb appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so users reduce food intake.
Patients typically start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.
Evidence indicates users may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the medication, as their normal hunger come back.
To be above a healthy weight increases your risk for developing medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Obesity affects people in every country and was associated with 3.7 million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the WHO.
