The Philippine Department of ForeignAffairs (DFA) on Tuesday advised its nationals not to travel to tsunami-hit Asian countries.

DFA spokesman Gilbert Asuque said that the risk of acquiring various illnesses is high as thousands of decomposing bodies are yet to be buried.

"As of now we will advise Filipinos not to proceed to those areas due to health reasons," Asuque said.

Asuque also said that the DFA is studying a proposal from the Senate to impose an official ban on traveling to tsunamis-hit areas.

The United Nations on Tuesday put the latest death toll in Asia's tsunami at around 150,000 and warned it could still soar as relief workers were confronted by huge devastated areas without roads, bridges and airstrips.

Official statistics showed that at least five Filipinos were among those confirmed killed in Phuket, Thailand, while 13 others remained missing.

The DFA said that a 12-man Philippine medical team including doctors, nurses and sanitation engineers will fly to Sri Lanka andIndonesia in the next few days to help in the identification of recovered bodies.