Global Warming Makes Thai Food More Dangerous

Temperatures this year have been the highest for the past 50 years, with the average temperature increasing by one degree Celsius according to the Thai Meteorological Department Published on October 9, 2007

Chongkolnee Yusabye, director of the Meteorological Development Bureau, said that after monitoring the impact of global warming on Thailand for the past five years, the agency predicted that the impact of natural disasters would increase in future.

Chongkolnee was speaking at a seminar called “Life, shock, climate change: how to survive the impact of global warming”, held to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Krungthep Turakij newspaper, which is part of the Nation Multimedia Group

She said the average temperature across the country had increased in both the winter and summer seasons.

The average temperature last November was the highest for 56 years, up by 1.7 degrees Celsius on the average temperature for winter. The average temperature last December increased from 24 degrees Celsius to 25 Celsius.

Between 1951 and 2007 the number of cool days - classified as below 16 degrees Celsius - has decreased particularly in Chiang Rai and Nakhon Sawan provinces. Information from a monitoring station in Chiang Rai province found that the number of cool days had decreased from 90 days in 1951 to 70 days in 2007.

Chongkolnee said that average summer temperatures had risen, especially in Tak province, where the average temperature was 43.7 degrees Celsius in 1983 and 44 Celsius last April. The number of hot days in the province increased from 16 to 25, the highest number for 54 years, over the same period.

The second hottest province was Phetchabun, where the average temperature rose from 41.7 Celsius in 1992 to 42.1 Celsius in 2007, and the number of hot days from 14 to 24.

The rising temperatures across the country have prompted health experts to warn the public against eating under-cooked food, which could cause severe diarrhea.

Dr Thirawat Hemachudha, a neurologist at Chulalongkorn University Hospital, said the Public Health Ministry should issue regulations to prevent restaurants from serving semi-cooked dishes like spicy raw meat salad.

Rising temperatures could affect the life cycle of E coli and V cholerae bacteria, particularly in half-cooked dishes. These parasites can cause severe diarrhea, Thirawat said.

“If the temperature increases by 0.5-1.5 degrees Celsius it can affect the nature of the parasite. It can reproduce more easily and thus come into contact with humans more frequently,” he said.

He said restaurant owners should take responsibility for treatment cost if customers suffered diarrhea after eating under-cooked dishes. But those who eat dishes that are traditionally served raw or semi-cooked had to bear the responsibility themselves.

– The Nation 2007-10-09

OK, I can see where food might spoil more quickly if the heat goes up, but just 1 degree Celsius? You and I both know that there have been people getting sick on raw and undercooked food in Thailand for as long as there have been people in Thailand. Let’s not blame the heat in a tropical country for illnesses that are really being caused by the lack of standard hygiene practices.

Typically it is only newcomers to Thailand that have serious problems with dishware, but locals can have these problems themselves as well. Any local Thai will be able to tell you which street stalls are and are not safe in the areas that they work and live. And the problems are often not from meat or seafood, but more from fruits and produce which have been washed in tap water.

I have eaten raw shrimp and larb many times at my in-laws in Tak and have suffered no ill effects. Typically any problems I have had are from street food in Bangkok and even though I can’t say for sure I believe it has almost always been from som tam (papaya salad) or fresh fruits.

I’m pretty sure many travelers to Thailand have had similar problems. Care to share any of your experiences? Or if you don’t get sick when in Thailand what do you do to avoid the dreaded Montezuma’s revenge?

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Health Care in Thailand

Because health is a part of everyone’s life including me so I have to talk about it inevitably. Of course not everyone can get away from being sick, especially when it’s time that your body lose vitality by the time moving forward or be used too much. And of course if it happens no one denies health care service for taking care of your body and rehabilitate to be as well as before.

From the past Thailand was known as the country for tourism only, but at the present so many things have changed. In recent years Thailand has become the one famous country in Asia and every year will have so many tourists fly from their own country to get medical care service in Thailand. From the current reported the amount of foreigners who come to Thailand for medical service up to 1.2 million people per year. And it seems like it will be getting more and more every year. What and why does it happen like that?

Efficiency and quality of Thailand’s medical care profession - This is the most important basic necessity or the key that can give the answer why Thailand became the famous country in medical care service. Now Thai medical profession is regarded as an advance just like in America, Canada or Europe. A lot of medical practitioners graduated or following ship from abroad. And most of them had an experience from foreign country so this can guarantee their proficiency. However I didn’t include the modernized medical instruments, hospital accreditation and all reward that guarantee the quality of that hospital yet.

Cost - This one almost as important as above because as far as the best medical care that you can get, but at the same time you have to pay like twice as much different from the other one that not too bad but for the price much lower…then of course you will pick the latter one…unless you’re a wealthy person. The cost for medical care service in Thailand is much lower than abroad, that’s why the foreigner would like to come to have so many things done here. Come on let’s think about this…you can go and have your boobs done and also have some money left for a nice vacation in Thailand too. How’s that?

I have my own experience…no no no…not with my boobs though. Last time me and Steve went to see the dentist here, we both have an appointment for cleaning only, but after everything done the bill comes up with $492…OMG!!! I was shocked at that time…let’s do this $492 x 34(baht) = 16,728 baht. How many times are you going to get to see the dentist in Thailand (for cleaning only I mean)? Good luck for us that Steve’s insurance covered for, but still we both had to pay $89 for something that his insurance didn’t cover. And I told him that last year I went to see the dentist for cleaning at Yanhee International hospital it costs me like 600 baht…still much cheaper than $89 though.

Expert system in a branch of each disease - Inform of the famous for treat and cure a disease is an importance too. Because not every hospital or every medical care service can have an expert in every disease, so this one the patient or their family will be the judge. And also depending on how many cases of patients that that doctor or hospital have an achievement for cure or treat the disease.

From my own experience in a medical field as a nurse in Thailand what I can tell is this: Bangkok General Hospital, Bumrungrad Hospital and Siriraj Hospital are famous for heart disease, BNH Hospital is famous for Spine surgery and Plastic surgery, Samitivej Hospital is famous for pediatric and women’s health department, Yanhee International Hospital and Phyathai Hospital are famous for beauty center etc. Anyway there’re just some from a hundred or more that I didn’t talk about yet and every hospital try to compete to be a number one in every disease. So it’s really hard to tell sometimes and like I said the answer for choosing which hospital that you’re going to use have to be you and your family will be the judge.

Others - Service excellent, marketing, commentator, type of the hospital like a public hospital or a private hospital, size like a big one or smaller one etc. All kinds and types of things that will have an effect on the decision for the customers. Because it means will be satisfied and worth the money that you have to pay for too.

And one more thing that you need to know when you’re going to use the medical service from that place is are you have an information enough? Because sometimes for something you can’t take it back…just my good intention!

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