Thailand’s Buddhist monks have an obesity problem

[webfact]

Thailand’s Buddhist monks have an obesity problem
By Sophia Rosenbaum

BANGKOK: -- Nearly half of all monks in Thailand are dangerously obese, according to country officials who are rolling out a nationwide program to help the holy men bust their Buddha-like guts.

“Obesity in our monks is a ticking time bomb,” Jongjit Angkatavanich, who works at Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, told the Bangkok Post.

Angkatavanich cited a study that revealed 48 percent of monks were obese, 42 percent had high cholesterol and 23 percent had high blood pressure. About 10.4 percent were diabetic. The number of monks participating in the survey was not revealed.

Full story: http://nypost.com/2016/03/15/buddhist-monks-have-an-obesity-problem/

-- NEW YORK POST 2016-03-16

[Reigntax]

They need to walk more and stop driving around in their vintage car collections.

[leeneeds]

On an average most are around late 30 's to middle age , unused carbohydrates will sit around the stomach and then spread to the oblique muscles giving the first stage of love handles,

When the bell or gong is rung or belted in the morning, it should signal the start of cutting a few laps around the WAT, Not doing any physical work to burn off excess is the main problem,

combined with smoking and a lack of eating green vegetables.

The monks should be transient and walk all around the country staying at different WAT's on their travels, once travelled a complete circuit then they are able to choose where they will serve their time out, and help their local community, however they can,

To many material things have crept into the life style, there are more than a few who view their choice to become and train as a monk as an easy cop out

[SoilSpoil]

Most of them are being given meals consisting of white rice, sugary drinks and mama noodles. Hardly a diet on which you could maintain a healthy life style.

[MaiChai]

I believe they wake up about 4am, bang a big drum, go collect alms, and then sleep the rest of day. Not a healthy lifestyle.

[SABloke]

Most of them are being given meals consisting of white rice, sugary drinks and mama noodles. Hardly a diet on which you could maintain a healthy life style.

Most of them do jack shirt all day.

[thaiduncankk]

Most of them eat, then spend all day on their arse playing with the latest smartphones all day Not bad for people who are not supposed to have any material possessions !

[worgeordie]

Living of the fat of the land comes to mind.

regards Worgeordie

[JeremyBowskill]

Most images I see of Buddha have him down as Rubenesque in stature.

[Benmart]

Live and Let Live.

[blazes]

Where's Geoffrey Chaucer when you need him? The Canterbury Tales contain several portraits of corrupt priests who live high off the hog. Six centuries later, we no longer have priests selling bits of Jesus' hair or a kneebone of St James (Santiago de Compostela).

However, we do have Catholic priests whose hands wander irresistibly.

[soalbundy]

try working for a living instead of scrounging

[timber]

Maybe if the Temple's shared the food with the needy there wouldn't be as much waste and the monks would be a bit slimmer.

[soalbundy]

Maybe if the Temple's shared the food with the needy there wouldn't be as much waste and the monks would be a bit slimmer.

Fair's fair, they actually do. When they eat their donated food many people sit down to watch and are invited to join in eating and many do, at least in my village, cant say if this is normal everywhere.

[melvinmelvin]

eating only 1 meal a day is probably not a good idea, health wise

a few years ago there was an article i a newspaper about this,

it claimed that the food given to monks had been going downhill (qualitywise) for years, at least in the cities

families have a far busier life style now than a few years back, they have little time to prepare proper food for the monks

and opt out by buying/giving too much junk food

[leeneeds]

Where's Geoffrey Chaucer when you need him? The Canterbury Tales contain several portraits of corrupt priests who live high off the hog. Six centuries later, we no longer have priests selling bits of Jesus' hair or a kneebone of St James (Santiago de Compostela).

However, we do have Catholic priests whose hands wander irresistibly.

Their prong would be closer to the mark !

[mihalis]

Most of them eat, then spend all day on their arse playing with the latest smartphones all day Not bad for people who are not supposed to have any material possessions !

Agree, tho not half as bad as Catholic priest.. Living like kings..

[janpharma]

...apparantly not only monks have this problem...

[wabothai]

eating only 1 meal a day is probably not a good idea, health wise

a few years ago there was an article i a newspaper about this,

it claimed that the food given to monks had been going downhill (qualitywise) for years, at least in the cities

families have a far busier life style now than a few years back, they have little time to prepare proper food for the monks

and opt out by buying/giving too much junk food

Check out the eating habits of the ancient Abkhazians.

[robblok]

eating only 1 meal a day is probably not a good idea, health wise

a few years ago there was an article i a newspaper about this,

it claimed that the food given to monks had been going downhill (qualitywise) for years, at least in the cities

families have a far busier life style now than a few years back, they have little time to prepare proper food for the monks

and opt out by buying/giving too much junk food

Check out the eating habits of the ancient Abkhazians.

The fact that they died out must say enough about the quality of their eating habits

But one big meal is advertised by some.. look up intermittent fasting.

[ratcatcher]

Most images I see of Buddha have him down as Rubenesque in stature.

I guess that Rubenesque images is the common Chinese style Buddha "fat and jolly". Popular in the west as "Smilin'Buddha"

Most images of Siddartha Gautama show a slimmer man. Not many photographs of the man exist.

https://www.google.co.th/search?q=siddhartha+gautama&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=637&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjaxbfLncTLAhWGFpQKHT0QBI4Q_AUIBigB&dpr=1#imgrc=ZbyD2UoiZpHL1M%3A

http://www.123rf.com/photo_13216010_golden-chinese-buddha-statue-in-wat-arun-in-bangkok-thailand.html

[Mot Dang]

This must say something about the flagging attitude to the Buddhist precepts of being a monk.

[attrayant]

Obesity: scourge of the greedy & gluttonous.

I believe they wake up about 4am, bang a big drum, go collect alms, and then sleep the rest of day. Not a healthy lifestyle.

I'm having a hard time understanding what Buddhism is in Thailand. According to both of my brothers in-law, true monks mustn't walk door-to-door looking for handouts (that's essentially begging), instead people are supposed to go to the temples and give willingly.

[sotsira]

They should take a leaf out of the Shaolin monks lifestyles,

that would take care of any obesity problems.

[Thian]

They should take a leaf out of the Shaolin monks lifestyles,

that would take care of any obesity problems.

images-2.jpeg images.jpeg

shaolin-temple-kung--monk-40203153924658.jpg

I have trained many years at a Shaolin school and all i can say is that Thailand is far too warm for sporting like that.

But sitting on their butt all day can't be healthy for them, i know a big temple in BKK where they grow all kinds of crops around the Watt, recycle goods and sell it and probably much more. They are busy there every day.

[sotsira]

They should take a leaf out of the Shaolin monks lifestyles,

that would take care of any obesity problems.

images-2.jpeg images.jpeg

shaolin-temple-kung--monk-40203153924658.jpg

I have trained many years at a Shaolin school and all i can say is that Thailand is far too warm for sporting like that.

But sitting on their butt all day can't be healthy for them, i know a big temple in BKK where they grow all kinds of crops around the Watt, recycle goods and sell it and probably much more. They are busy there every day.

So how do you explain Thailand's number one sport MuayThai which is trained all around the

country out in the open heat?

[soalbundy]

They should take a leaf out of the Shaolin monks lifestyles,

that would take care of any obesity problems.

images-2.jpeg images.jpeg

shaolin-temple-kung--monk-40203153924658.jpg

I have trained many years at a Shaolin school and all i can say is that Thailand is far too warm for sporting like that.

But sitting on their butt all day can't be healthy for them, i know a big temple in BKK where they grow all kinds of crops around the Watt, recycle goods and sell it and probably much more. They are busy there every day.

So how do you explain Thailand's number one sport MuayThai which is trained all around the

country out in the open heat?

Shaolin is different,it's called kicking the habit

[mca]

Is a fat monk known as a chunk?

[jamesbrock]

Most images I see of Buddha have him down as Rubenesque in stature.

I guess that Rubenesque images is the common Chinese style Buddha "fat and jolly". Popular in the west as "Smilin'Buddha"

Most images of Siddartha Gautama show a slimmer man. Not many photographs of the man exist.

https://www.google.co.th/search?q=siddhartha+gautama&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=637&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjaxbfLncTLAhWGFpQKHT0QBI4Q_AUIBigB&dpr=1#imgrc=ZbyD2UoiZpHL1M%3A

http://www.123rf.com/photo_13216010_golden-chinese-buddha-statue-in-wat-arun-in-bangkok-thailand.html

Indeed, despite the caption of the image in your second link that is not Buddha - it is either Budai or Phra Sangkajai. Any image of a 'fat' Buddha is almost certainly either Budai or Phra Sangkajai; Gautama Buddha is never represented as fat.

Often mistaken for Gautama Buddha, Budai is a Chinese folkloric deity. Phra Sangkajai (or Sangkachai) is a monk widely respected in Thailand who was an arhat during the time of the Buddha. My wife told me the folkloric tale that Sangkachai was so attractive that angels and men often compared him with the Buddha. He considered this inappropriate, so disguised himself in an unpleasantly fat body. I told her that is exactly what I'm doing...

Although both Budai and Phra Sangkachai may be found in both Thai and Chinese temples, Phra Sangkachai is found more often in Thai temples, and Budai in Chinese temples. Two points to distinguish them from one another are:

1. Phra Sangkajai has a trace of hair on his head (looking similar to the Buddha's) while Budai is clearly bald.
2. Phra Sangkajai wears the robes in Theravada fashion, with the robes folded across one shoulder, leaving the other uncovered. Budai wears the robes in Chinese style, covering both arms but leaving the front part of the upper body uncovered.

[sotsira]

They should take a leaf out of the Shaolin monks lifestyles,

that would take care of any obesity problems.

images-2.jpeg images.jpeg

shaolin-temple-kung--monk-40203153924658.jpg

I have trained many years at a Shaolin school and all i can say is that Thailand is far too warm for sporting like that.

But sitting on their butt all day can't be healthy for them, i know a big temple in BKK where they grow all kinds of crops around the Watt, recycle goods and sell it and probably much more. They are busy there every day.

So how do you explain Thailand's number one sport MuayThai which is trained all around the

country out in the open heat?

Shaolin is different,it's called kicking the habit

Yes, the habit of becoming a lazy fat monk instead of an energetic fit monk.