Less than a tenth of patients who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it publishes its first guidance on the drugs.
Given more than one billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is calling for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Per projections, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"Our new guidelines affirms that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with comprehensive and lifelong support," stated WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to universal access to the treatments that can assist patients in reducing significant weight, notes the agency.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the present most optimistic scenario, the production of such drugs could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, as stated by the WHO.
The advice urges nations and manufacturers to increase access, via measures including patent sharing.
The intellectual property rights on semaglutide – the main ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple countries in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Work
These medications imitate a body's own hormone to delay gastric emptying, suppress the appetite and increase feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
People typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Studies suggests people may regain a significant portion a year later of stopping the drug, because their usual food cravings resume.
Being carrying excess weight elevates your risk for contracting diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific cancers.
Excess weight affects people in all nations and was associated with over three and a half million deaths worldwide in 2024, according to the health agency.
