WHO Sounds Warning Over Severe Scarcity of Obesity Injections
Under one in 10 patients who could benefit from obesity jabs such as Wegovy are able to get them, caution the World Health Organization as it publishes its initial advice on the drugs.
With more than one billion people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is urging more widespread and fairer availability to these injectable treatments.
According to projections, over two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 if no action is taken.
"Our new guidelines affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be treated with comprehensive and continuous treatment," stated the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are significant barriers to universal access to the injections that can help people shift considerable weight, says the organization.
Skinny Jab Shortage
Even in the current most favorable scenario, the supply of these medications could only cover around 100 million people – under 10% of those who need them, per the health organization.
The advice calls on nations and manufacturers to expand availability, by measures such as voluntary licensing.
A patent on semaglutide – the core ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in a number of countries in 2026.
The Way Obesity Jabs Operate
The injections imitate a biological compound to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance satiety so people consume fewer calories.
People typically start to lose weight after several weeks of beginning the weekly injections.
Evidence suggests patients may see weight return a year later of stopping the drug, as their typical hunger resume.
Being above a healthy weight increases your chance for developing health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and specific cancers.
Excess weight concerns individuals in every country and was responsible for over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.