Malnutrition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Malnutrition - Essay Example Deficiency of the nutrient iron is the main cause of Iron Deficiency Anaemia. This deficiency often occurs due to any or some of the following reasons; less number of iron stores in the body at birth, inadequate intake of iron (through diet or its absorption by the body), increased need of iron charged by growth and increased loss of iron from the body. Thus, as dietary iron is unable to fulfil the body’s requirements, the depletion of iron stores occurs (which is identified by a drop in serum ferritin below 12 Â µg/l). The continuation of this negative balance causes the availability of iron tissue to be compromised which, after a series of events, begins a fall in haemoglobin level. Low haemoglobin level in the body is quite dangerous because it leads to decreased immunity and, thus, chronic inflammations, especially among children. Decreased immunity and increased infections and illness cut down wellbeing and physical performance in daily living, proving how essential iron is for the body (Olivares et al 1999; Patterson et al 2000). ... antly accentuated when the obese person is lying flat and causes restlessness, daytime drowsiness, a rise in carbon dioxide and a fall in oxygen levels. These eventually develop into pulmonary hypertension and respiratory failure. Elevated amounts of fats in body also raise the total volume of blood circulating in the body. Pumping of so much blood towards and from the heart causes its left wall to enlarge, resulting in incomplete emptying of the heart’s chambers (systolic and diastolic dysfunction) and, eventually, heart failure. It is also confirmed that obese people, who generally have a higher BMI than normal people, have a greater chance of acquiring diabetes as the overall fatness influences glucose metabolism, leading to insulin resistance whenever a glucose-rich meal is taken. Obesity is the type of malnutrition that usually exists in developed countries where levels of physical activity (which burn excess body fats) are low, and can be by far the most fatal of the thr ee diseases if it is left untreated (Kopelman 2000). The final type of malnutrition-related disease is Kwashiorkor, which usually occurs in under developed countries and is caused by the imbalance of the nutrients protein and carbohydrate. It occurs most often in young children after weaning due to the fault of the guardians in providing proper compatible feeding or an adequate substitute for the mother’s protein-rich breast milk. In spite of the lack of proteins in the diet, if the child is provided with sufficient calories from carbohydrate-rich foods, the result is Kwashiorkor. The symptoms of this disease appear only after a variable interval, during which the child seems to progress normally; the child stops gaining any weight and the face, hands and feet start to swell. The child also