Thailand -- Thai Health Promotion Foundation & "Sweet Enough"

On the Wednesday of my Thailand trip (August 4th) our group visited the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (THPF) in Bangkok. The vice-chairperson of the THPF, professor Supreeda Adulyanon, gave us a presentational overview of what the THPF is about. The Thai government has come up with an ingenious way to improve the health of its citizens by taxing cigarettes and alcohol and giving that sin tax directly to the THPF to apply to health promotion programs. If I remember correctly, 5% of every sale of alcohol is given directly to the THPF on a weekly basis. This ensures that the THPF has a continuous input of funds to put towards thirteen different “plans”:

1. Tobacco Consumption Control, 
2. Alcohol Consumption Control, 
3. Traffic Injuries and Disaster Prevention, 
4. Health Risk Factors Control, 
5. Health of Specific Group of Population, 
6. Health Promotion in Community, 
7. Children Youth and Family Health, 
8. Health Promotion in Organizations, 
9. Physical Exercise and Sports for Health, 
10. Social Marketing and Communication, 
11. Open Grants and Innovative Projects, 
12. Health Promotion through Health Service Systems, and 
13. Supportive Systems and Mechanisms Development for Health Promotion. 

Examples of these programs in action are advertising campaigns against drinking and driving, quit-smoking programs, school education programs to reduce the consumption of refined sugars, HIV/AIDS and safe sex education programs and so on.

The THPF attributes their success to the "Triangle that Moves a Mountain"-strategy. Basically it is the implementation of policy making based on scientific studies and motivated by social activism. For instance, they would provide scientific studies showing how advertising aimed at the youth creates young smokers. Then they would get social groups motivated against such advertising, which in turn will persuade the government to implement policies against cigarette advertising aimed at the youth.

After lunch Dr Pat Chatiketu, director of the THPF’s brand communication, spoke to us about one of the projects called “Sweet Enough.” This project focuses on reducing the amount of refined sugars consumed by children. You can visit the Sweet Enough website at Maikinwan.Com, although it is mostly in Thai. As part of the Sweet Enough campaign, they have a mascot called Noynoi – a little pink ant that prefers natural healthy foods over processed unhealthy foods. With an arsenal of Noynoi books, games, and videos they entertain and educate children in the ways of better health.

That afternoon we left for Saraburi to join the Seangwittaya Elementary School where they have implemented a No Sweet Food Project into their school curriculum, based on the THPF’s “Sweet Enough” concept. It was quite heartening to see such active promotion of healthy living amongst the children. We were treated a little bit like celebrities, which I though unnecessary – we’re only a group of university lecturers and students wanting to learn more about health education in a foreign country – but I guess it was a way for the school to show off and be proud of the great work they are doing.