Study shows that most Thais spend majority of time doing nothing

A new survey says that, not taking into account sleeping time, Thai people spend the majority of their waking hours being completely sedentary.

We’re talking 14 hours that are spent not using their bodies for much of anything.

“Despite being awake, they are not physically active. They spend their day sitting inside cars, at their desk or in meeting rooms. They usually lie down while watching TV or checking their smartphones,” said Dr. Wachira Pengjuntr, the Health Department’s director general.

Speaking yesterday, Wachira was referencing the results of a survey by Mahidol University’s Institute for Population and Social Research, reported The Nation.

We all know about the Thai disinclination for walking anywhere, but Wachira noted that so many hours without physical activity were bad for Thai people’s health.  

“Foreign research shows being physically inactive hurts the metabolism and control of the blood-sugar level. This means people are at a risk of heart, coronary and brain diseases,” he warned.

That’s funny. This survey by the state-owned Thai Health Promotion Foundation said that, while Thais don’t spend much of their time drinking or smoking, they are almost always physically active. 555.