According to the WHO, over 1 billion individuals worldwide suffer with obesity, which is a “chronic, progressive, and relapsing disease.” LONDON: The World Health Organization has endorsed the use of weight-loss interventions to treat obesity, stating that it is time to view the condition as a serious, chronic illness rather than merely a lifestyle issue. The organization called on nations to adopt a fresh perspective and treat obesity as a chronic condition that requires appropriate medical treatment in its new draft guidance.
The WHO expert committee came to the conclusion that, in addition to counseling on lifestyle and behavior modifications, the well-known GLP-1 medications—which were initially created by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly—are a component of the long-term treatment of obesity for patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above. In May of this year, NewsPaper initially reported that the WHO was expected to take this action.
The WHO stated that the response to obesity was frequently influenced by antiquated ideas that frame it as a lifestyle issue in the draft guidelines, which were made public online and are available for consultation until September 27. Rather, it was described as a “chronic, progressive and relapsing disease” that contributes to millions of avoidable deaths and affects over 1 billion people worldwide in both high- and low-income nations. It called it a crucial step in creating a worldwide standard of treatment and suggested utilizing the medications to treat obesity for the first time. It is creating distinct criteria for the treatment of adolescents and children.
The medications are also advised for those with a BMI of 27 to 30 with at least one weight-related medical problem, even though the WHO’s draft guidelines only apply to those with a BMI over 30 in some high-income nations, such as the US. The WHO’s essential medicines list, a distinct catalog of medications that ought to be accessible in all operational health systems, did not include the medications used to treat obesity earlier this month.
It did include them for people who have another medical problem in addition to type 2 diabetes, the condition for which they were initially created. The organization added that the high costs were restricting access to the medications in low- and middle-income nations, and that this showed which people would gain the most from the expensive treatments.
