World Health Organization Issues Alert Over Severe Shortage of Obesity Injections
Under one in 10 individuals eligible to benefit from obesity jabs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the World Health Organization as it publishes its inaugural advice on the drugs.
Considering more than one billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is advocating for increased and just access to these injectable treatments.
Per projections, over two billion will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our latest guidelines affirms that excess weight is a chronic disease that can be treated with thorough and continuous support," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, insufficient output, and logistical bottlenecks are major obstacles to widespread access to the injections that can help people shift substantial body mass, says the body.
Skinny Jab Supply Crisis
Despite the current most favorable case, the production of GLP-1 therapies might only reach about 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, as stated by the health organization.
The advice urges governments and firms to expand availability, by strategies like voluntary licensing.
The intellectual property rights on the active ingredient – the core component of a leading brand – is due to expire in several countries in 2026.
How Obesity Jabs Work
The injections imitate a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and boost the sense of being full so individuals consume fewer calories.
Patients typically start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the weekly injections.
Evidence suggests users may see weight return after a year of stopping the treatment, as their normal food cravings resume.
To be above a healthy weight increases your risk for contracting medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and specific malignancies.
Excess weight concerns people in countries worldwide and was associated with millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
