The Global Health Body Raises Alert Over Acute Scarcity of Obesity Jabs

Under a tenth of people who could benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy can access them, caution the World Health Organization as it publishes its first recommendations on the therapies.

With over a billion people worldwide now obese, it is calling for increased and just access to these injectable treatments.

Per projections, more than two billion could be obese by 2030 without intervention.

"The latest guidelines recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be addressed with comprehensive and ongoing care," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Significant expense, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are major hurdles to universal access to the jabs that can help people shift significant weight, notes the body.

GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity

Even in the present most favorable scenario, the production of such drugs could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of the global need, according to the WHO.

The recommendation urges governments and firms to increase availability, via measures such as patent sharing.

The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in a number of countries in 2026.

How Weight-Loss Injections Operate

These medications replicate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.

People commonly begin shedding pounds after several weeks of starting on the regular doses.

Research suggests patients may regain a significant portion a year later of discontinuing the medication, because their normal appetite come back.

To be above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for developing diseases, like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and certain cancers.

Obesity concerns individuals in countries worldwide and was responsible for 3.7 million deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.