Too many monks too heavy: Thai survey

Forty five per cent of Thai monks were overweight and many suffered from chronic illnesses such as septic ulcers, high blood pressure, and diabetes, a study said yesterday.

As a result, researchers will distribute material for monks and laymen about healthy and clean food offerings.

The research was conducted ahead of the Buddhist Lent on 246 monks in 11 provinces by the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth), Chulalongkorn University and Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University.

A further diet study involving 29 monks at four urban temples and laymen found the monks' consumption of over two glasses of highsugared drinks in the evening could lead to overweight and diabetes, while food offerings had too much carbohydrate and too small protein.

Fifty per cent of the cooked food samples from alms offerings were found to be contaminated with coliform bacteria, the study found.