World Health Organization Sounds Warning Over Severe Scarcity of Weight-Loss Injections

Less than one in 10 people eligible to benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy can access them, warns the World Health Organization as it issues its initial advice on the therapies.

Given over a billion individuals worldwide now living with obesity, it is advocating for more widespread and fairer availability to GLP-1 medication.

According to estimates, over two billion could be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.

"The new guidelines recognises that excess weight is a lifelong illness that can be addressed with holistic and ongoing treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

High costs, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are major barriers to broad availability to the jabs that can aid individuals in losing substantial weight, explains the body.

Skinny Jab Shortage

Even under the current most optimistic outlook, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover approximately 100 million people – under 10% of eligible patients, as stated by the WHO.

The recommendation urges governments and firms to widen availability, by approaches like patent sharing.

Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is due to expire in a number of nations in 2026.

The Way Weight-Loss Drugs Operate

The injections mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance the sense of being full so people reduce food intake.

People commonly start to lose weight within a few weeks of commencing the once-weekly jabs.

Research points to people may put most of the weight back on a year later of discontinuing the treatment, as their usual hunger resume.

To be overweight or obese increases your likelihood for developing health problems, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, brain attack, and certain cancers.

Excess weight impacts people in every country and was linked to millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.