The average daily salt intake per person here is more than three teaspoons, while the World Health Organisation recommends no more than one teaspoon, Dr Narongsak Ungkhasuwapala, deputy permanent-secretary of the ministry, said.

This overindulgence has led to the number of people suffering from high blood pressure doubling over the past five years, he said.

Kidney disease and even failure are also associated with excessive salt intake, he told a conference of about 200 health workers involved in the control of non-communicable diseases.

People were failing to eat

enough vegetables and other fibre-rich foods, which worsened the effects of consuming too much salt, he said.

The ministry has been cam-paigning to build public aware-

ness of the dangers of a salt-rich diet and the benefits of watching daily intake.

People tended to add a lot of

seasoning to pungent dishes such as som tam (spicy papaya salad) and kuay tiew tom yum (spicy noodle soup), while children eat too many salt-rich crispy snacks, he said.

High blood pressure is a "silent killer", said Dr Narong Sahame-

thapat, deputy director-general

of the Disease Control Depart-

ment.

Warning signs include dizzi-

ness, headaches, blurred vision

and blackouts, but only about three in 10 of those with hypertension are aware of their condition and seek medical help before it's too late, he said.

Treating the disease is costing the country about Bt20 billion per year, he said.

The risk of a person with high blood pressure suffering a stroke

is between three and 17 times

higher than normal, so people are advised to get a blood pressure

check twice a year and exercise

regularly to fight this health threat, Narong said.

 Arthit Khwankhom

 The Nation