The boys had unsurprisingly told their rescuers they were very keen to get a good meal.

The health officials say they were at first given instant food and energy gels but are now eating real easy-to-digest food. They're avoiding spicy dishes, for now.

After more than two weeks in the damp and dark, the boys are widely expected to have some health problems when they surface.

ABC News writes that one problem may be a rare condition called cave disease, external - an infection caused by a fungus called Histoplasma capsulatum.

"Though most people exposed to Histoplasmosis don't get sick, those who do may look like they just have the flu with symptoms including fever, cough, extreme tiredness, chills, headache, body aches or chest pain. These symptoms usually appear between three and 17 days after a person breathes in the fungus."

Officials are giving a briefing now on the health of the boys who have been brought out.

They all had full check-ups, with blood tests, X-rays, and rabies tests. They were given vitamins and antibiotics.

X-rays on two of the first group brought out showed abnormalities, indicating possible infection, they say.

On each of the first two days the divers brought out four people. Today, Tuesday, there are five left inside.

Yesterday, the head of the operation, Narongsak Osottanakorn, said rescuers had learned from experience and were two hours faster in bringing out the second batch. That means there is a chance that they can get all five out today.

But it's not just about time, it's also about oxygen supplies and preparations along the hazardous route.

It hasn't just been written messages of hope and love for the 12 Thai boys and the coach of their football team, the Wild Boars. Thais, ardent lovers of illustration, have been sharing cartoons depicting the intense search and rescue operation using the hashtag 'Bring the Boar Team Home', external.

This is one of many trending hashtags that have been used widely among social media users in Thailand. A previous one titled, 'The strangers we want to meet the most' was also a top trend in the country.

On Saturday, Karadzic posted on Facebook about the massive amount of support the team have had. This was one day before the rescue got under way but the picture gives you another glimpse of what it's like inside that cave.

Ivan Karadzic is another one of the team of divers with the international rescue team.

He was stationed at a notoriously difficult stretch of cave about half-way along, and his job was to replace air tanks and help guide the teams through.

Our correspondent Jonathan Head, who's been at the rescue for more than two weeks, says today is critical.

The rescue has had an unexpected celebrity angle, as billionaire US engineer and innovator Elon Musk offered do to what he could to help out.

He has proposed using a "kid-size submarine" to help the group navigate the caves, or an inflatable tunnel to help them crawl out.

In the past few hours he tweeted:

To get an idea of what the boys - and the rescue divers - are facing, this image from earlier in the week shows some Navy Seals wading through one section of flooded cave. It's pitch black, and the water is muddy and fast-moving.

Image source, AFP

Mikko Paasi is one of the international divers helping to get the boys out. He runs a technical diving centre in the south of Thailand and is a specialist in wreck and cave diving.

If the team manages to get all the remaining five out today, it might be the last time he has to go in.

On Tuesday, the mood was tense in Mae Sai, the closest town to the caves, as people were waiting for any further news of the group's safety.

In a few hours we're expecting to get an update on the rescued boy's condition. They're in hospital in Chiang Rai, an hour or so away from the cave.

Officials have said the boys were not immediately allowed to meet their families, for fear of infection. It also appears that parents were not told which of the kids had reached safety - one official said it would be unfair for some to get news and others not.

We understand that some of the foreign divers who are helping with this operation have gone into the cave this morning. They have about a five hour trip before they reach the boys and then turn around to bring them back out. It was quite late in the afternoon Thai time (GMT +7) before they reached the surface on Monday.

The BBC has a team of reporters and producers deployed at the cave and in Chiang Rai, where the group are being taken to hospital once they get out. We'll be bringing you all the latest news and comment from the scene throughout Tuesday.

We've also built a Twitter list , externalso you can follow all our colleague in Thailand in one place.

If you speak Thai, you can follow news on BBC Thai.

In the middle of all the incredible good news, there has been one tragedy. A former Thai navy Seal diver, who had volunteered to help in the rescue, died late last week.

Petty Officer Saman Gunan had been delivering air tanks inside the cave, part of the operation to keep the trapped group supplied while they awaited rescue.

His family told BBC Thai that their immense pride in what he did was helping them cope with their grief.

Initially, rescuers had thought the best option would be to let the boys wait out the rainy season as water levels fell in the cave. That would have meant months underground.

But it soon became clear that was not an option - there was a real danger the small area of dry ground they had found inside would get flooded too. So a mammoth effort began to get them out.

And the only way out is to walk, wade, swim and in some areas, dive a route that has challenged even experienced cave divers.

Welcome back to our live coverage of the dramatic operation to rescue a group of trapped boys and one adult from the Tham Luang cave in northern Thailand.

The boys went missing on Saturday 23 June - they'd gone exploring in the cave together. But it appears they got trapped by rapidly rising waters after heavy rain. Hopes were fading that they'd be found alive but then this happened last week.

Image source, Getty Images

Efforts to rescue the remaining four boys and their coach trapped in flooded caves in northern Thailand have been suspended until the morning.

Four more boys were successfully retrieved on Monday, bringing the total to eight young members of the Wild Boars football team now recovering in hospital. All are said to be in "good" health.

The decision to go ahead with the rescue - an incredibly complex operation that began on Sunday - was made as heavy rains were forecast to hit the area where the caves are located, near the city of Chiang Rai.

Just days earlier it was reported that authorities were preparing for the possibility that the boys could be trapped in the flooded cave network for months.

With the operation on pause overnight, we will also be temporarily pausing our live coverage. The rescue effort is set to resume on Tuesday and it is unclear if the remaining five will all be brought out together.

Plans are "set for four people, if we bring five we have to change the plan", rescue mission chief Narongsak Osottanakorn has said.

Thank you for joining us today. We will bring you all of tomorrow's developments as this remarkable news story continues to unfold.

You can read more of our coverage below.

• Four more boys rescued by Thai Navy divers
• How risky is the Thai boys rescue?
• Who are the Thai boys trapped in a cave?
• 'I am dying to see him. I miss my son'
• Letters of love from trapped Thai boys
• The operation in pictures

Some of the parents still desperately waiting for news will likely still be taking comfort in the brief notes the boys were able to send out, carried by the divers who have been keeping them supplied since they were found.

In the notes, they told their parents not to worry, but that they were looking forward to coming home.