The World Health Organization (WHO) published this Monday a guide to use for weight loss “pens” that have become a global phenomenon and a central factor in the weight loss process of millions of people around the world. These injectable drugs are already widely marketed, but only now does the WHO consider that it has enough information to argue that this type of medication can be taken without major health risks in the short term, writes “El País”. However, in the long term the data still requires further analysis. In the last four years, the sale of packages of semaglutide, the active substance in Ozempic, increased by more than 500% in Portugal.
Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro, the best-known brands of this type of drug, have achieved enormous popularity, exceeding, in many cases, their availability. The WHO has now decided to include them in its list of essential medicines (currently 532), considered “essential” and which should therefore be “universally” accessible. For this reason, the organization advises countries to include its provision in public health policies, which, in practice, would make this type of solutions more accessible. The reimbursement is provided for situations related to disease control, but not for the treatment of excess weight. The WHO saysI don’t understand, that only 10% of people who may need this treatment by 2030 will be able to access it.
Speaking to journalists, the director-general of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, reinforced that obesity is a “chronic” disease that in 2024 alone was associated with 3.7 million deaths worldwide. Although medicines alone will not solve this “global health crisis”, therapies “with GLP-1 can help millions of people overcome obesity and reduce its adverse effects”, he concluded, using scientific nomenclature to refer to drugs that help lower blood glucose levels.
Some studies show that there are over 1000 million people in the world with obesitya number that could double by 2030. The use of weight loss drugs could reverse this trend. There is already data in the United States that shows a decline in the number of people with a Body Mass Index above 30. In 2022, 40% of Americans were at that mark (obesity) and in 2025 the percentage dropped to 37%, according to data from Gallup. It is the first time in more than a decade that obesity rates have not increased in the United States.
This study, by Gallup, also reveals that the number of people using GLP-1 or similar medications to reduce weight went from 5.8% of the population in February 2024 to 12.4% currently. This does not mean that these types of medicines are having the same effect in all countries. The United States is a country with a high incidence of obesity, with a population of 350 million people, with high purchasing power or very easy access to credit, all of which are factors that encourage the purchase of these drugs, which are not cheap.
On online medication sales sites, a 2.5g Mounjaro pen, pre-filled, costs around 180 euros and is subject to a prescription. According to data from Infarmed, published by “Público”until April this year alone, the Portuguese spent around 21 million euros on injectable drugs. “Our biggest concern is limited access and that this could worsen inequality between rich and poor”, explained the director general. “Urgent measures” must be taken to avoid this.
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