Fewer than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy have access to them, states the global health agency as it publishes its first recommendations on the drugs.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide now obese, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
According to forecasts, over two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"Our latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and lifelong care," said its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are key obstacles to universal availability to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing considerable body mass, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Supply Crisis
Despite the current best projected outlook, the supply of GLP-1 therapies could only cover around 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, according to the health organization.
The guideline calls on nations and manufacturers to increase access, by strategies such as licensing agreements.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Work
GLP-1 drugs mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and increase feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
Patients typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Studies indicates users may see weight return after a year of stopping the treatment, when their usual food cravings return.
Being carrying excess weight raises your likelihood for contracting health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Obesity affects people in all nations and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the WHO.
