A changing diet in past decades has seen Thai people grow accustomed to consuming too much sugar and salt, negatively impacting their health. This has led to more cases of non-communicable diseases (NCD), heart problems, high-blood pressure and diabetes in state hospitals, which is placing a heavy burden on government spending.
The healthcare budget accounts for over 400 billion baht a year, or 15% of the total budget. This has prompted policy makers to plan more state intervention like additional tax measures in the hope of reducing the number of NCD cases and ultimately lowering the state's healthcare costs.
Wichit Chantanusornsiri is a senior economics reporter, Bangkok Post.
A series of tax initiatives are currently being mulled by the Excise Department. It plans to impose higher levies on products that are deemed harmful to people's health, in particular ingredients that are sources of salt, Patchara Anuntasilpa, director-general of the department, said earlier this month.
However, he said frozen foods would not be taxed, in the interests of fairness, as the same foods when freshly cooked by vendors are also exempt from this. Taxes on high-sodium and trans fat foods are part of the department's comprehensive tax package, which is expected to be sent for cabinet approval by year's end.
According to Mr Patchara, the department is working out the details of a plan to tax ingredients that are sources of salt or which contain saturated fats. The department also plans a five-year relief period for local manufacturers to reduce salt and trans fats in foods.
Needless to say, such intervention, known as the "sodium tax", which aims to change behavioral patterns of consumption, is a must. Before this, however, the government added a levy on sugary products in order to persuade consumers to cut back on their sugar intake. Sugar is a major cause of obesity and diabetes. The government has also banned the use of trans fats in cooking.
But levies are just a part of the preventive measures on offer.
To begin with, we have to admit the fact that it is heavy advertising campaigns and aggressive marketing tactics that lure people to consume excessive amounts of sugar and salt, resulting in bad health. This is especially true for urban folk living hectic lifestyles who have scant time to cook for themselves and so rely mostly on eating out.
According to the Low Salt Network, Thais consume about 3,500 milligrammes of sodium per day, far exceeding the World Health Organisation's daily recommended maximum of 2,000mg. Public health statistics show that about eight million of Thailand's 70 million people are suffering from chronic kidney problems. There are 7,800 new cases each year. Of these, only about 500 are able to get transplants.
Without a doubt, some chronic ailments like high blood pressure can result in paralysis or partial paralysis and, as such they are adversely affecting the country's workforce.
In order to make the crusade against sodium more successful, the government should also consider "non-tax" measures.
One measure that could be kicked off right away would be to instruct all food shops in the canteens of government agencies or state enterprises, as well as school canteens, to lower their sugar content. Such a campaign, however, must be stringent and would require strict monitoring.
Another measure would be to oblige fast food operators to inform their patrons of the amount of "harmful" or unhealthy ingredients per portion.
As a more advanced step, the state could consider issuing a law that legally caps how much sugar, fat and sodium can be used in each product.
Tough measures are needed to lower the state budget, especially regarding healthcare coverage. If not, the problem will intensify as Thailand continues to grey. People over 60 now represent more than 10% of the total population.
Some experts have warned that Thailand is on the brink of becoming a "super aged society" when people older than 65 comprise at least 20% of the population. The National Statistics Office puts the current proportion at 11.7% but expects this to hit 17.3% in 10 years, and 24.1% by 2038.
The rising number of older people places a burden on the healthcare budget. The government must treat this issue with the utmost seriousness and adopt preventative measures to make people more healthy. Otherwise, the state budget system could collapse.