Nearly 9% of Thai children aged between six to 14 fall short of the country’s set height average, the Department of Health said on Thursday ahead of World Milk Day on Saturday.
Department director-general, Dr Phaphimon Wipulakon, said of those considered “short” for their age, the average height for girls stood at only 149.9 centimetres, while boys averaged out at only 148.6cm.
“The average height for 12-year-old girls and boys should be around 155cm and 154cm, respectively,” she said.
“We want to bring the percentage of ‘short’ children down to 5% from the current level of 8.8%,” Dr Phaphimon said.
Drinking milk is being promoted by the government as one way of increasing the average height of Thais.
“We are encouraging everyone to drink at least two standard servings of fresh, plain milk every day, especially during pregnancy and adolescence,” said Dr Phaphimon.
“Children should also eat the equivalent of one whole egg per day to ensure sufficient protein intake, exercise for at least an hour each day, and sleep between nine to 11 hours each day to maximise the effect of the human growth hormone, most of which is secreted at night time.”
Currently, Thai children only drink an average of one glass of milk a day, Dr Phaphimon added.
Established by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to promote the value of milk as a part of healthy diet, World Milk Day is celebrated each year on June 1.