🔗 Share this article The Global Health Body Sounds Concern Over Severe Scarcity of Weight-Loss Jabs Fewer than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial advice on the therapies. Given over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to GLP-1 medication. Per forecasts, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention. "Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with thorough and ongoing care," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to broad availability to the treatments that can help people shift substantial weight, notes the agency. Skinny Jab Shortage Despite the present most optimistic case, the manufacturing of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization. The recommendation calls on countries and companies to expand access, via strategies such as voluntary licensing. A patent on a key compound – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026. How Weight-Loss Drugs Work The injections mimick a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance satiety so individuals reduce food intake. Patients typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses. Research indicates patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the medication, as their typical food cravings come back. To be above a healthy weight elevates your likelihood for developing diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers. Obesity affects individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.
Fewer than one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy can access them, warns the WHO as it issues its initial advice on the therapies. Given over a billion people worldwide now classified as obese, it is advocating for broader and more equitable access to GLP-1 medication. Per forecasts, more than two billion are projected to be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention. "Our latest guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be managed with thorough and ongoing care," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to broad availability to the treatments that can help people shift substantial weight, notes the agency. Skinny Jab Shortage Despite the present most optimistic case, the manufacturing of such drugs would only suffice for about 100 million people – fewer than 10% of eligible patients, per the health organization. The recommendation calls on countries and companies to expand access, via strategies such as voluntary licensing. A patent on a key compound – the core component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in several nations in 2026. How Weight-Loss Drugs Work The injections mimick a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, curb appetite and enhance satiety so individuals reduce food intake. Patients typically start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the regular doses. Research indicates patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the medication, as their typical food cravings come back. To be above a healthy weight elevates your likelihood for developing diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers. Obesity affects individuals in countries worldwide and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, as per the health agency.