Officials working to reduce sugar intake in Thailand amid growing health concerns

[snoop1130]

Flickr/Sidney Khoo

 

Thailand’s Department of Health says it’s working with the private sector in a bid to raise awareness of the health risks associated with too much sugar. Department chief Suwannachai Watthanayingcharoenchai says the new project aims to improve the public’s understanding, with participating restaurants cutting back on the amount of sugar they use in their dishes.

 

The project has been launched amid growing concern about expanding waistlines in Thailand and the health implications of too much sugar. Health department officials have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the IMPACT company to design a healthier food and drinks menu, cutting the amount of sugar used by 5%.

 

The IMPACT group is owned by Bangkok Land Plc, with CEO Pol Kanchanapas saying his firm will ensure all of its food businesses will use healthy ingredients. The company runs the EASE Café, targeting health-conscious diners with a healthy food and drinks menu.

 

Suwannachai welcomes the firm’s partnership with the Department of Health, pointing out that rising sugar consumption in Thailand is damaging people’s health, leading to a potential obesity crisis.

 

“Such cooperation is needed to improve public awareness about the link between food and beverage consumption and good health.”

 

Meanwhile, the Bangkok Post reports that in 2019, a survey carried out by the Health Systems Research Institute showed that only 36% of respondents over the age of 15 had a normal body mass index.

 

Over 37% fell into the overweight or obese category, while around 9% had diabetes and nearly 28% suffered with high blood pressure.

 

Full Story: https://phuket-go.com/phuket-news/national-news/officials-working-to-reduce-sugar-intake-in-thailand-amid-growing-health-concerns/

 

-- © Copyright Phuket GO 2023-01-31

 

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[riclag]

Those kha nohm are a curse, at times! 

[scubascuba3]

Usual rubbish, no mention of junk food and the growth of the Western diet, 7 Eleven, Mcdonalds, Burger King, pizzas etc

[kotsak]

[kickstart]

2 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Usual rubbish, no mention of junk food and the growth of the Western diet, 7 Eleven, Mcdonalds, Burger King, pizzas etc

True ,but do you have bows of sugar at our restaurants ,for putting in food,not like us only for tea or coffee.

My blood pressure, and weight are OK ,I have been trying to get the wife to cut down on sugar and salt and msg in food ,it is like trying to push sh@# up hill ,how can you eat food without the above she said,been doing it for 40 years plus.

Like a lot of things here in Thailand some will never change ,and the Thai's and they almost an obsession with food, this will not change .

Last year the wife's daughter was in hospital with Covid ,wife was with her for 10 days ,I was on my own buying market stall food some bags of curry was so sweet it was like eating Ka-Nom's Thai sweets ,or others that salty, that week the dogs did well.

The problem will get worse, not better. 

[cmjl]

It's not just sugar that is the problem it's also lack of exercise just as it is in the western world and you can blame a lot of that on the computer age,once upon a time kids went out to play physical games now they sit and play games on their devices,the first used up a lot of calories the second one doesn't = fat kids and unless those fat kids change their lifestyle they become fat adults.

About 15 years ago I was talking to a friend who'd spent many years working in Thailand and he was saying how fat westerners were getting and that the Thai people weren't like that,I said to give them 10 years and that the influence of TV would change them-it would have been nice to be proved wrong.

[BananaStrong]

3 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Usual rubbish, no mention of junk food and the growth of the Western diet, 7 Eleven, Mcdonalds, Burger King, pizzas etc

You CAN'T blame the West for this one......I was a teacher for five-years and saw kids drink those Taiwan bubble teas all day, plus ice cream and you name it..

 

plus white rice isn't good for your blood sugar.  spikes blood sugar easy, the West didn't make Thais eat rice. all those sauces with tons of sugar, plus MSG just to really mess you up... and Thais like cakes, sure.   

 

Plus no exercise.

Plus it's way too hot for exercise for most.

Plus nobody seemed to teach people how to drink enough water.   

Plus all the coffee is really 50% sugar, that 3-1 horrible stuff

Plus all that Red Bull stuff probably messes up your system.....

Plus their diet is about as balanced as broken stick.   whatever that means.

 

anyhow, Thais are ADDICTED to sugar.  Sugar is an addiction.   Western food works because Thais are already addicted.   95% cities in Thailand don't have McD's, BK, etc.....   and pizza is expensive for most.

 

nah, Thais love sugar.  HUMANS love sugar.   Even educated people get addicted to sugar.

 

This is why I own a sugar company and the FIRST taste is free!!!!!!!!!  

 

 

[3NUMBAS]

everyone will have diabetes one day

 

pity their pancreas longevity

[Lingba]

Thais put sugar on everything..they put sugar on sugar....everytime I go to a fruit shake stand I have to tell them no sugar and no salt...they look at me funny ..but if I dont they pour that sh*t in....

[scubascuba3]

8 hours ago, kickstart said:

True ,but do you have bows of sugar at our restaurants ,for putting in food,not like us only for tea or coffee.

My blood pressure, and weight are OK ,I have been trying to get the wife to cut down on sugar and salt and msg in food ,it is like trying to push sh@# up hill ,how can you eat food without the above she said,been doing it for 40 years plus.

Like a lot of things here in Thailand some will never change ,and the Thai's and they almost an obsession with food, this will not change .

Last year the wife's daughter was in hospital with Covid ,wife was with her for 10 days ,I was on my own buying market stall food some bags of curry was so sweet it was like eating Ka-Nom's Thai sweets ,or others that salty, that week the dogs did well.

The problem will get worse, not better. 

Get them evidence their diet is doing them harm, get a blood test done at a lab, cheap depending where you are

[scubascuba3]

7 hours ago, BananaStrong said:

You CAN'T blame the West for this one......I was a teacher for five-years and saw kids drink those Taiwan bubble teas all day, plus ice cream and you name it..

 

plus white rice isn't good for your blood sugar.  spikes blood sugar easy, the West didn't make Thais eat rice. all those sauces with tons of sugar, plus MSG just to really mess you up... and Thais like cakes, sure.   

 

Plus no exercise.

Plus it's way too hot for exercise for most.

Plus nobody seemed to teach people how to drink enough water.   

Plus all the coffee is really 50% sugar, that 3-1 horrible stuff

Plus all that Red Bull stuff probably messes up your system.....

Plus their diet is about as balanced as broken stick.   whatever that means.

 

anyhow, Thais are ADDICTED to sugar.  Sugar is an addiction.   Western food works because Thais are already addicted.   95% cities in Thailand don't have McD's, BK, etc.....   and pizza is expensive for most.

 

nah, Thais love sugar.  HUMANS love sugar.   Even educated people get addicted to sugar.

 

This is why I own a sugar company and the FIRST taste is free!!!!!!!!!  

 

 

Apparently sugar isn't addictive it's the perfect combination of sugar and fat that is such as chocolate.

 

Remember they've lived for generations on rice and were slim, it's something else

[scubascuba3]

7 hours ago, cmjl said:

It's not just sugar that is the problem it's also lack of exercise just as it is in the western world and you can blame a lot of that on the computer age,once upon a time kids went out to play physical games now they sit and play games on their devices,the first used up a lot of calories the second one doesn't = fat kids and unless those fat kids change their lifestyle they become fat adults.

About 15 years ago I was talking to a friend who'd spent many years working in Thailand and he was saying how fat westerners were getting and that the Thai people weren't like that,I said to give them 10 years and that the influence of TV would change them-it would have been nice to be proved wrong.

It's 90% diet though, which is why those who try to lose weight by mainly exercise fail miserably, of course exercise is great for other reasons

[Orinoco]

Way to much sugar in cooking in Thailand.

and doing the shopping at 7/11, don't help the youngsters. 

[KhunLA]

How would that be even possible.  You can't dictate what people eat.  Only through education, though still up to the person to follow those common sense diet ideas.

 

Think everyone knows already, too much sugar, fats or simply calories in general that are NOT burned off is unhealthy.  They simply just don't care, if taking some of the folks waddling around is any indication.

 

Any mirror in the house usually points out the obvious.

[Orinoco]

Give it a few more years,  and we maybe able to  buy clothes that even fit us over here. 

[Muhendis]

2 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Apparently sugar isn't addictive it's the perfect combination of sugar and fat that is such as chocolate.

 

Remember they've lived for generations on rice and were slim, it's something else

Yes it is something else.

It's a combination of food quality and quantity.

People have more money to spend on food so they eat more but often the diet is of poor quality.

That, coupled with lack of calorie burning activity, leads to an unhealthy lifestyle and overweight.

[Ombra]

Before Covid, I used to see my neighbours walking to the market in the evening, but now many rely on motorcyclists to bring them food and the motorbikes are around all day long, not just at mealtimes. 

[hotchilli]

15 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Thailand’s Department of Health says it’s working with the private sector in a bid to raise awareness of the health risks associated with too much sugar. Department chief Suwannachai Watthanayingcharoenchai says the new project aims to improve the public’s understanding, with participating restaurants cutting back on the amount of sugar they use in their dishes.

About as much chance of stopping corruption.

[hotchilli]

15 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Meanwhile, the Bangkok Post reports that in 2019, a survey carried out by the Health Systems Research Institute showed that only 36% of respondents over the age of 15 had a normal body mass index.

 

Over 37% fell into the overweight or obese category, while around 9% had diabetes and nearly 28% suffered with high blood pressure.

Take a look in any convenience store/supermarket drink cabinets and see how many sugary drinks are available.

[Lucky Bones]

When you see parents spooning sugar into the kids Mama noodles, there just isn't any turning back.????????

[vandeventer]

Sugar, fat and salt these are all around you when you go shopping. If you buy pork meat you will find pork fat at the same price. In my little town where I live the average living age is 58. so they must be going something wrong, don't you think?

[xtrnuno41]

Is it the sugar? In the old days we had lead in our petrol. One man made an end to that, as lead wasnt quite healthy. 

Now the petrol has other additives, so what are they doing in time? Billions of cars puffing it out.

Processed food has all kinds of additives, so what does that do to body?

I take medicines for blood pressure, took them quite some time at the same time.

My weight was going up at once after a year or so and I split the medicines, just tried, taking it separately. One medicine in morning and other in the evening.

Guess what my weight went down again.

Worked 32 years in petro chemie, no clue how it has effected my body system.

And so they say peanut butter isnt good, eggs arent, red meat isnt and so on and so on, even  a glass of wine, as alcohol is also on the list.

 

Also had once statines for high cholesterol, never ever I will have them again.

Worked for lowering, but got lots of  body complaints in return and they were bad.

Seems i wasnt the only one, many people using it had bad complaints.

Breaks down Q10 enzym and also muscle. People couldnt walk anymore.

Even doctors now say, dont use statines. 

Sugar has negative effect? Maybe 

[Orinoco]

5 minutes ago, xtrnuno41 said:

Is it the sugar? In the old days we had lead in our petrol. One man made an end to that, as lead wasnt quite healthy. 

Now the petrol has other additives, so what are they doing in time? Billions of cars puffing it out.

Processed food has all kinds of additives, so what does that do to body?

I take medicines for blood pressure, took them quite some time at the same time.

My weight was going up at once after a year or so and I split the medicines, just tried, taking it separately. One medicine in morning and other in the evening.

Guess what my weight went down again.

Worked 32 years in petro chemie, no clue how it has effected my body system.

And so they say peanut butter isnt good, eggs arent, red meat isnt and so on and so on, even  a glass of wine, as alcohol is also on the list.

 

Also had once statines for high cholesterol, never ever I will have them again.

Worked for lowering, but got lots of  body complaints in return and they were bad.

Seems i wasnt the only one, many people using it had bad complaints.

Breaks down Q10 enzym and also muscle. People couldnt walk anymore.

Even doctors now say, dont use statines. 

Sugar has negative effect? Maybe 

Big Pharma, likes to keep people just sick enough, that's how the make the real money.

But  big sugar is stil bad for you, as well.

 

 

[thailand49]

This is Thailand!   Sugar is what fluids the country no basic education on health,  nutrient, if you do with anyone they bite your head off like an addict would do. 

my daughter in law, her little brother 12, 200 both grew up on sugar their style morning night is sugar from 7/11, in one sitting he took a jaw of ketchup and drank it as if it was soup. 

Their mother major diabetes problem can't stop goes down to Banglamung spends the day waiting area all full with same problem many in early stages don't even get medication just a brochure to educate themselves. Recently had a major operation to the heart cause by diabetes month later habits still the same she actually thinks all the Samgson she downs will help? 

 

[Pedrogaz]

When I first came to Thailand, you couldn't get a cup of coffee that didn't have the equivalent of 4 teaspoonsful of sugar....revoltingly sweet, even for me that has a really sweet tooth. Now I am T2D from all of those years growing up in the UK.

Things are ok still in Thailand and things have improved as sometimes waitresses sometimes ask if you want your coffee 'wan'. But the rise of limited numbers of morbidly obese children and young adult here in Thailand is a worrying trend for a major health crisis in the not too distant future. 

[cncltd1973]

I'm fit and healthy in the US, but whenever I'm in Thailand I'm in the worst shape of my life. MSG, sugar, fatty pork, white rice, and everything is saturated in oil

[Purdey]

Some friends ask, what business should i open in Bangkok? I say, a diabetic's supermarket and cafe where no food contains sugar. Seems like a no brainer but no one has taken the challenge yet. 

[scubascuba3]

2 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Take a look in any convenience store/supermarket drink cabinets and see how many sugary drinks are available.

Lowering the sugar content hasn't helped except in them paying more

[Orinoco]

58 minutes ago, cncltd1973 said:

MSG, sugar, fatty pork, white rice, and everything is saturated in oil

100% correct.

And that's just for breakfast here.

 

[jvs]

As long as the food industry is still looking for "the Sweet Spot"

there is no hope.

They add sugar and corn syrup to the max,they are not really to blame

because people keep buying it.

The whole health system in all countries needs a remake,people find it

makes sense to service their vehicle but they them selves keep going until

they break down.

On one hand their is a very large industry making people sick and on the other hand their is a very large industry to keep people alive.

It will take a major shake up of the system to change the course.

Richard Nixon to blame?

Will there be a politician who realizes we are heading for disaster and really try to do some thing?