The Global Health Body Raises Warning Over Acute Shortage of Weight-Loss Jabs

Under one in 10 patients eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the global health agency as it releases its initial guidance on the medications.

Given more than one billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to GLP-1 medication.

Per projections, over two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.

"Our new guidelines affirms that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with comprehensive and continuous treatment," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

High costs, constrained manufacturing, and supply-chain constraints are significant barriers to broad access to the injections that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, says the organization.

GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity

Despite the current most favorable case, the production of these medications could only cover approximately 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, as stated by the health organization.

The guideline calls on countries and companies to expand availability, through measures such as patent sharing.

Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the primary component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of nations in 2026.

How Obesity Jabs Work

GLP-1 drugs imitate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and boost the sense of being full so individuals eat less.

People commonly start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.

Evidence indicates users may put most of the weight back on within a year of stopping the drug, when their typical hunger resume.

To be overweight or obese raises your chance for experiencing medical conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and specific cancers.

Obesity impacts people in countries worldwide and was linked to over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.