Statement of the week: Living in Thailand is very unhealthy!
Living in Thailand after retirement is a dream for many. Daily with a cocktail or coconut in your hammock on the beach to enjoy the rushing sea and swaying palms. So getting old is not a punishment. Unfortunately, the daily reality is often more unruly.
Anyone who looks at the back of the medal soon wakes up from a beautiful dream. Thailand also appears to have quite a few negative aspects. For example, the country is not necessarily good for your health and, if you are not careful, even very unhealthy. Let's list some facts:
- The air in the cities and the North of Thailand (a few months) is very polluted. Air pollution (particulate matter) is one of the main causes of premature death (https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2018/05/01/who-7-miljoen-doden-door-fijnstof-a1601519 en www.thailandblog.nl/tag/fijnstof/
- In Thailand, little attention is paid to food safety. There is plenty of spraying with very dangerous agricultural poisons that are banned in Western countries. Meat and fish are also full of poison, antibiotics, growth hormones and other undesirable substances (www.thailandblog.nl/tag/pesticides/).
- Traffic in Thailand is very deadly and is among the second most dangerous in the world. The chance of being involved in an accident is very high (www.thailandblog.nl/transport-traffic/traffic-thailand-behort-tot-dangerous-ter-world/)
- There are many serious and contagious diseases in Thailand that are only moderately treated, such as dengue (dengue fever), rabies (rabies) and sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV.
In addition, alcoholism among expats and retirees is a significant problem. Because foreigners cannot actively participate in Thai society, boredom quickly sets in, often resulting in more drinking.
Due to the heat in Thailand, some extra exercise is not an obvious choice. Partly because of this, many pensioners are overweight and have a lot of belly fat. Belly fat is very unhealthy because it causes inflammation in the body.
In short, anyone who wants to grow old in good health will first have to scratch their heads before making plans to emigrate to the 'Land of Smiles'.
Hence the statement: Living in Thailand is very unhealthy. Do you agree with this statement or strongly disagree? Then respond and tell why.
Apart from whether life in the Netherlands is so much healthier, I prefer to live "unhealthy" in Thailand than healthy somewhere else. Not because TH is paradise on earth for me, but for the simple fact that my family also lives there and I also feel happy there. (I do in NL by the way)
I also wonder if the average age in TH is so much lower than in NL.
https://www.indexmundi.com/map/?v=30&l=nl
You can eliminate a number of factors that cause the average age in TH to be lower, such as all young people who die in traffic.
According to the WorldHealthOrganization, men in the Netherlands have a life expectancy of 80,0 years and in Thailand 71,8 years. So no less than 8,2 years shorter in Thailand.
For women in the Netherlands the expectation is 83,2 years and in Thailand 79,3 years. So 3,9 years shorter in Thailand
Especially for the men I think this is a lot, these 8 years.
Figures apply to 2018, see the link :
http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/thailand-life-expectancy
Yes, but if you first follow the average life expectancy in the Netherlands until you are 60, and only then come to Thailand, the picture is of course completely different... don't forget the stress that some people have to get by on a meager pension in the Netherlands versus the increased purchasing power in Thailand... you cannot compare apples and oranges.
Ger, I don't think this is a good comment regarding the question. The life expectancy of 71,8 years in Thailand applies to the Thai population that grows up here. A pensioner who has spent three quarters of his life in a well-protected environment does not suddenly deteriorate in health because he/she settles in Thailand. If it does, it's more down to that person's lifestyle (or bad luck with an illness) than Thailand.
The world seen between the North Pole and the South Pole ( including Thailand ) now grow old wonderfully and die in the Netherlands .
If you move to Thailand completely healthy after your retirement, I don't think it will matter that much that the air is a bit more polluted for a few months a year than you would have in the Netherlands. Your health starts with the basics, so if you have been reasonably healthy in the Netherlands in your younger years, you will certainly benefit from it later in life.
And yes, you will of course contract tropical diseases here sooner than in the Netherlands, and you will also have to pay extra attention to this in traffic if you do not want to be driven off your socks.
Thailand is like a cozy old-fashioned brown pub. It is not always healthy, but there is a feeling that you are alive and that mentality is perhaps just as important.
Living in Chiang Mai is good and the climate is reasonable until March, when the farmers who have their fields in the mountains set fire to them on a large scale, resulting in a lot of smoke coming down on the city. the heat and exhaust fumes from the traffic make it difficult to stay there, this often lasts until June and with the arrival of the rainy season this is over again, I personally intend not to be in Chiangmai at that time but to go to the coast in the south of Thailand below Bangkok there are still small clean seaside resorts and usually fresh air.
As far as air pollution is concerned, yes, Thailand doesn't take this problem very seriously. The neighbor sees no point in burning his waste, with the result: smelly unhealthy air when the wind is in the wrong direction. A car regularly pulls up and leaves behind pitch-black exhaust fumes as a thank you. Quickly set the air conditioning to circulation inside the car and wait a while before you allow air from outside again.
Spray unlimited poison on crops. No problem. Spraying toxic weed killer around so that the otherwise green environment turns into a brown dead lot. No problem. The government's response has been unsatisfactory. Money always seems more important than human lives.
Yes, you have to watch out for traffic. Try to anticipate every situation well in order to make the right decision when driving. Infectious diseases. Yes, you should try to avoid those. So far, I've lived here for ten years, no problem (knock on wood!).
Alcoholism. I think there is also a lot of intake in the Netherlands and you are ultimately responsible for that yourself. The same goes for exercise. Preferably do this just as it has become light. Then it is usually still cool and the air is not yet polluted.
In my opinion, good health is the most important basis for a happy life. My experience is that you have to create the conditions for this yourself. Someone else won't do it for you.
Incidentally, I enjoy sometimes tearing down the road with my scooter at eighty kilometers per hour. But yes, I'm 74 and a little crazy.
Completely agree with you. But what if the love of your life lives here?
So rather unhealthy here with my wife, than 'healthy' in Belgium, without….
Treasurer... And then there are Thailandblog readers, who think that I am negative about Thailand, if I also dare to look NEXT to those triple pink Thailandgoers glasses, given business experience since 1977 as an employee and since 1994 as my own boss...
You forgot one more point in the summary: in NL there is almost UNLIMITED medical care for the elderly (1% of the care recipients consume 25% of the total healthcare budget), but for the NL people, who are hung”, and “moved under the palm trees”, the medical care is quite different. No problems, then the rose-colored glasses remain, but different: pay yourself or... just die. Frans Adriani, 150/121 Tarn-Ing-Doi Village, Tambon Hang Dong, Ampur Hang Dong, Chiang mai 50230 also suddenly disappeared around the age of 75.
Life in Thailand is very unhealthy.
Then you haven't even mentioned the amount of asbestos in the air.
Dutch experts will undoubtedly be able to tell you that everyone in Thailand has died of lung cancer by the time they are 30 years old.
That asbestos is cut to size with an angle grinder, where huge amounts of asbestos are blown into the air and it lies everywhere as rubble along the side of the road.
Thailand is therefore not the best holiday destination for people with an asbestos phobia.
But I feel happy in Thailand, and turning a hundred, deaf and half blind, needing help with everything and maybe even dementia and incontinent, is not a prospect that appeals to me either.
@ GerKorat: these figures apply to Thai men, and are undoubtedly strongly influenced by the high mortality rate among male youth, by violence and accidents.
wash a white shirt in bangkok, hang it on your balcony in the morning.
and in the evening you can wash it again, there is a black glow of fine dust on it.
that is why many Thai people have respiratory complaints.
All medals have 2 sides - one that shines and one that rarely sees the light of day.
All places on this globe therefore also have advantages and disadvantages.
Either too cold or too hot
A lot of visible poison or a lot of hidden junk in the food
Diseases, cancers… can be found everywhere
Good food .. can be found everywhere
Nice friends.. can be found everywhere
Soursops and nail-biters….found everywhere
So on
Everyone chooses what suits them best and enjoys the freedom to make that choice…
Enjoy all that is fun and beautiful – forget the bad moments and enjoy the good ones.
Do, be kind and polite and enjoy
Greetings
Guy
In the list of reasons why living in Thailand would not be so healthy, I can only agree with the point of air pollution.
You can avoid and avoid the other dots!
On the other hand, you can perfectly compensate for that unhealthy aspect, i.e. air pollution, by, for example, not smoking, drinking little alcohol, and feeling good mentally...
Such pollution will probably always take a few (or exceptionally, perhaps many) years off someone's life, but you can very well compensate for that with possibly many more years by feeling mentally good and happy.
Well-being is the best remedy against an unhealthy life!
Someone with a normal life expectancy will certainly reach old age, provided they take a little care, also in Thailand.
I have asthma and experience it every day in my city of Antwerp, but whenever I am in Bangkok (this is my favorite city and I also get away from the stress there) I do not suffer from my asthma at all!!
However, Bangkok is one of the most polluted cities in the world.
But I feel very good there mentally and (probably that's why I think) have never had problems with my asthma (is really the truth).
VERY VERY VERY unhealthy! How many times I have fallen through those plastic chairs, countless.
But otherwise: I lived 'outside' for sixteen years in the clean Isaan air, sullied only by the 'pats' of cows and water buffaloes and I have not been sick for a day. It totally depends on where you live and how you behave.
When it comes to food safety, in the EU do you know what you put in your mouth? Are all those E-things so good for you? You have a lot in your own hands.
For me, Thailand has not turned out to be unhealthier than NL.
It seems to me that such a conclusion is not representative and statistically correct if it is based solely on personal experience.
Indeed, in the Isaan where I sometimes come, people burn their own waste (plastic) and inhale a lot of poison (PCBs) unhealthy activity.
I totally agree with this post. In particular, the lack of healthy food worries me a lot for my still young son. Due to circumstances we are still forced to live in Thailand, but the preference is for a country like Spain or Portugal. Equal or cheaper living costs, better disease care, better climate, better food, and healthier air.
If you live in Thailand for a longer period of time, the exotic is a bit off, and those eternal rice meals also get boring. But the final blow for me is the climate, being forced to stay indoors between 09.00:16.00 and XNUMX:XNUMX is not exactly the way I had envisioned my retirement days.
Let it be a bit unhealthier in Thailand now. In the Netherlands, once you pass the age of 60, you are considered an old person. If in the Netherlands, as Arend says above, you tear across the road with your scooter at 80, you are considered crazy. This is normal here and you can continue to feel young. And possibly die a little earlier, Where is the problem? You must die anyway.
Thailand is a hopeless country.
Two posts this week:
1: Prayut does not intend to support the proposal to punish traffic violations with higher fines.
2: Women will no longer be admitted to the police academy in the future. It is strictly forbidden for those involved to give their opinion about this.
What does this have to do with the topic of health? Everything. If the problems mentioned here are treated so badly, then you can't expect anything from environmental problems and many other issues that urgently need to be addressed.
That is precisely why we live in Bang Saray, little or no air pollution, cycling every day with a minimum of danger, we can go straight into the jungle, which is wonderful, and as far as the food is concerned. We mainly eat imported frozen vegetables, so the risk of poison is greatly reduced. Eat regularly in Bel. and Dutch. restaurants, with real chefs who know what they are cooking.
The best hospitals within easy reach, as well as supermarkets, 15 minutes away with our safe car, not with a motorcycle? So we have limited the risk, important in our opinion is the location, after twenty Thailand I can speak with it
Isn't Bang Saray close to all the chemical industries and refineries in Rayong? If the wind is from the east, I think it would be better to close the windows.
Well, of course every place has its advantages and disadvantages. The sky in Bangkok or in Pernis – let the experts see which one is better. I believe that the great advantage of living in Thailand is that there are plenty of places where you have space and nature, and others where you have more entertainment - everyone can choose what they prefer.
In particular, attitude to life, fewer traffic jams (in general) and cheaper living are major advantages. watch out for mopeds or traffic in general and you can live happily here!
The grass is always greener on the other side, so seize the day and choose what suits you best or a combination of the two!
Carpe Diem,
Thailand is a beautiful country with friendly people, and as far as health is concerned, it matters a lot where you live.
But that there are many factors that are not directly healthy, is a fact that many expats, who do not want to hear anything negative about Thailand, like to be rejected.
Everything that cannot be seen with the naked eye in terms of bad air and poison is simply not available.
In order to defend themselves, they are immediately compared to the home country, where, according to them, even more was wrong.
The simple Thai, who goes to the market every day, is financially forced to look for a favorable price for his food, and partly because of ignorance, will not delve much into the fact whether something may have been sprayed with poison.
Also, many restaurants that buy to make a profit will, without my wishing to generalize, first look at the price, and at the most be concerned with whether something is unhealthy.
And although certain months in the North waiting rooms are full of patients with respiratory problems, almost everyone still burns their waste, and most have never heard of harmful particulate matter caused by diesel vessels, among other things.
The very dangerous traffic in Thailand, where many die prematurely, is dismissed by both the Thai and many expats with the fact that they have been driving for years and have never had anything.
Yes, teachers themselves who think they can do everything better, and like to teach others how to behave in Thai traffic, while simply ignoring the fact that most accidents are caused by the many unpredictable road users who often do not even know traffic rules.
And should the expat's health ever go wrong, so that they suddenly need a doctor, they usually have to rely on their translating Thai husband, who often has to conduct the entire conversation with the treating doctor and translate.
On land you often have to look for a doctor who speaks really good English, and if someone does this really fluently, it remains important for your own health, for many it is still a conversation between 2 people who do not speak their own mother tongue.
There is of course nothing wrong with someone buying these and other disadvantages for their stay in Thailand, if they are not constantly trying to talk these things down, with comparisons from their home country where most things are simply better regulated.
The statement may be true in some cases, but not in general, especially if you live in the countryside in Isaan, for example:
-No significant air pollution due to low industrialization, little traffic and no forests being set on fire.
-Poison in foods will undoubtedly be more common here, but oh well, an aunt of my wife is already 102 and the average Thai is also getting older. I have never read a report stating that you live x years shorter if you consume foods with 10* the maximum amount of a certain pesticide. I would be surprised if with all those toxins in Thailand you would live a month shorter in total. Smoking and being overweight seem much more dangerous to me. By the way, I eat from my own garden and fish pond. To be sure.
It is of course a completely different story for the people who use those products at work. Unprotected, of course, they run a considerable risk. But the ordinary consumer? That will be alright.
-On the four-lane highways, there is hardly anyone here who drives faster than 100. Of course you run a considerable risk on a scooter, but I don't have one. And on the bike? A car coming from behind will almost always drive in the right lane when they pass me. I don't run any extra risk here in traffic.
-Rabies? Only in a small number of areas. Dengue fever? Maybe. HIV? With a condom? And what about the flu, for example? This is common in the Netherlands because in the winter we are packed together with the windows closed. Here I sleep with the windows open. And even if I occasionally visit a restaurant, it is often in the open air. So here in Thailand the chance of such diseases is small.
-Little exercise due to the climate? I stopped playing football in the Netherlands because of the climate. Playing football on frozen fields in winter, with a biting wind and freezing rain is really no fun. You have to have some perseverance to start exercising here in the heat, but the Dutch (together with the Flemish?) were at the forefront when willpower was handed out, right? So I absolutely cannot imagine that the climate would be a reason not to exercise. I clearly exercise more here than I did in the Netherlands.
-Drug abuse due to boredom? That's really not necessary. Read the stories of The Inquisitor.
No, there are even more positive things to mention:
-An acquaintance of mine had joint problems. Once you got off the bus in Bangkok, those complaints disappeared.
-In the six years that I have lived in Thailand, I have lost an average of one kilogram per year, despite the fact that my wife can cook well (sometimes also European) and I have no stomach or intestinal complaints. My BMI has now dropped to 22.
-My pulse rate has also dropped during my stay in Thailand, to 53 now. The same goes for my blood pressure. But yes, I do not live in Pattaya.
-Sports in Thailand is attractive because of the facilities. For example, I live within cycling distance of an athletics track (and there are two more at a slightly greater distance) that I can use without any problems because there is no one there early in the morning. There is also a full-fledged football competition for people aged 40 and even over 50. I don't think you have that in the Netherlands. There is walking football in the Netherlands for people over 60. But of course that is no longer football.
-In Thailand I am woken up by the sun every morning (we don't close the curtains). In the Netherlands you have to buy a special device to be woken up that way. Letting the sun wake you up is also said to be good for your health.
-Furthermore, you are probably less likely to get sunburn (and therefore skin cancer) here than in the Netherlands because your skin in the Netherlands has to rebuild its natural protection every year in the spring. Here in Thailand I never have sunburned skin even though I am outside for hours every day and I am (was) a redhead. And I won't get a vitamin D deficiency here either.
And if there are problems, the doctors are ready. Day and night.
Partly true… you can also get sick in Spain…..in Brasilia it is very dangerous to participate in traffic…dengue fever…also in Cuba…well I have more negative reports…
But my father in law and mother both Thai are 89 & 86 respectively and are in excellent health…. watch what you eat… don't smoke .. moderate with alcohol… and avoid big cities because of smog.
Thailand is a beautiful country…I enjoy every day
This negative story does not apply to me. I have been living in Pattaya Jomtien for 8 years now. Feel a lot healthier than when I came here. I lost 20 kg because of the Thai food. So for minus the healthy life in Thailand was very healthy. I know some Farangs can't keep their hands off the alcohol but that's their problem. I drive a car in Thailand which is not dangerous. (85% of the accidents are on motor bikes) So I won't sit on that.
I also feel that especially air pollution (isaan) and food quality are very serious.
but if I still read that the average Thai man lives only 8,2 years shorter than the Dutch… If I then subtract all drunks and idiots on the road (groups to which I do not belong) the balance is pretty good I think… .But still my feeling says something different….
Of course there are many things that can be referred to as unhealthy or very unhealthy in Thailand.
I do want to make a comment here.
Heart disease, dementia, high blood pressure, etc. are spreading all over the world as an ineradicable virus.
Stress has become big business.
Many studies, which remain under wraps, because the multinationals do not necessarily want to bring this out, show that the food we eat is so processed that there is no question of a fresh product for a long time.
Facts:
genetically modified (GMO) corn and soy are notorious for their high glyphosate content. Many animals eat these crops, so that we humans consume them indirectly, through these animals. We also eat a lot of oils from GMO corn and soy.
Glyphosate makes a farmer's life a lot easier. It should really be a last resort, but it is being used en masse and on a large scale. As a result, it leaks into everything and is even in our tap water.
There are so many toxic pesticides in our tap water that the price will rise considerably in the coming years.
Glyphosate is not only in our drinking water, it also spreads in our food.
It even goes so far that organic food also contains glyphosate.
The question is therefore not whether you ingest this drug, but how much. According to research, the majority of Dutch people have detectable glyphosate in their urine.
Thailand is in some ways unhealthier, but in the Netherlands and the rest of the world they are not inferior in some respects.
Maybe we camouflage it better.
Not at all.
Now live in Thailand since December 2017.
Have been wintering in Thailand for about 15 years.
In the past, every year in Belgium flu and other ailments. NEVER HERE AGAIN!!!
Know many Westerners here who suffer from rheumatism and live here almost painlessly WITHOUT MEDICINES and this is NOT possible in Belgium. The reason is simple: almost constant temperature around 30 degrees.
There are also super hospitals with single rooms that do not exist in Belgium and there are no long waiting lists. It is not for nothing that wealthy Americans are treated here.
The air quality in Belgium is not better than in Thailand and you also live by the sea.
How polluted is the air in the Netherlands really or do you live under the pollution of the Botlek or under the pollution of the Ruhr area? Don't make me laugh at the naive idea that the Netherlands is clean.
They talk to all of us in the Netherlands about ailments that really come from air pollution and not from 1 or other product.
Of course you have to watch out with the food in Thailand, so go eat somewhere where it is hygienic.
And food from the supermarkets is not dangerous.
I just wanted to get this out
The statement is not about the Netherlands, nor about food hygiene.
I agree completely with the writer of this subject and if drastic measures are not taken, Thailand will experience this in the short or long term. By that I mean fewer tourists and certainly fewer Europeans and eadie who will live there permanently.
Lionel.
Life expectancy is based on Thai men and not on foreigners. Suspect that working conditions also influence life expectancy. Government employees (teachers, civil servants, police, army, medical personnel, etc.) can accrue a pension, others cannot. From the age of 60, these people receive a meager amount per month that you cannot live on. They are simply forced to work until their death. Not in aircondition but outside on the fields.
Life is suffering. You can choose where!
There is an individual, influenceable side to healthy or unhealthy living in Thailand and there is a collective side: things that are or are not regulated here in Thailand or just happen and that you as an individual have little or no influence on.
I don't believe living in Thailand is very unhealthy. What I can do about it myself, I do about healthy living, but not always. In terms of food and food preparation, the Thais certainly live healthier lives than the Dutch. I'm not a health freak. As for the overall situation in Thailand, I'm not too worried. Not that there are no alarming reports, but there are also from the Netherlands, although they often do not make it to the press. Did you know that 7000 to 8000, mainly older, Dutch people die from the flu every year? Just sayin.
Haha, well you can of course argue everything in wonderful Dutch in a negative way of thinking, and the stated statements are partly true, but:
In Thailand you have no stress, and that gives me at least about 10 years more.
Climate is very much more pleasant.
In terms of particulate matter emissions, if you don't live in the middle of the center, this is a lot less.
In terms of quality of food, I think the same as the above point. If you think logically, you can see that fresh fruit without ice is not normal, sushi at the local market without refrigeration is weird and you don't eat these things. When we eat isaan, we eat a lot of raw vegetables, which are tasty and healthy.
Violence and traffic and many other things: immerse yourself in the culture and put your pointing Dutch fingers in your pocket.
Common sense will get you a long way