Malnutrition
Seeing emaciated pictures of children on TV and in news always brings tears to my eyes. It does so especially considering the amount of food that is lost in through man made causes like war and unnecessary conflicts. Furthermore in the developed countries so much food is thrown away but how do we get the balance? What does the future hold for the malnourished children besides more and more suffering if they survive? Please help if you can.
Hundreds of millions of people are affected by malnutrition throughout the world, but most of the cases come from third world countries. Malnutrition is a condition of the body when it is unable to absorb the right amount of nutrients in foods (Malnutrition). This low level of nutrient intake exists because of low levels of food in certain parts of the world. These low levels of food occur because of poor farming techniques, poor storage, extreme weather conditions, and poor supplies. Malnutrition causes many physical problems for people worldwide, but the world can alleviate these problems through many humanitarian acts such as sending food and supplies and teaching farming techniques.
Healthy diet
Eating a healthy, balanced diet is vital
for maintaining health and fitness. To stay healthy, we need to eat foods from
a number of different food groups, including:
- carbohydrates
- proteins
- fats
- dairy
Nutrients
There are two main groups of nutrients:
- Macronutrients are the main nutrients that provide the body with
energy and help growth. They include carbohydrates, protein and fats.
- Micronutrients are vitamins and minerals that are required for many
specialist functions inside the body. For example, you require a regular
intake of iron to help in the production of new red blood cells.
Causes of Malnutrition
Food shortage is the main catalyst of malnutrition and
there are many causes of food shortages around the world. One of the main
generators of food shortage in the world is the lack of competent resource
distribution from governments. Another cause of the food shortage is the use of
poor supplies by third world countries.
Lack of breastfeeding
Experts say that lack of
breastfeeding, especially in the developing world, leads to malnutrition in
infants and children. In some parts of the world mothers still believe that
bottle feeding is better for the child. Another reason for lack of
breastfeeding, mainly in the developing world, is that mothers abandon it
because they do not know how to get their baby to latch on properly, or suffer
pain and discomfort
Alcoholism
An alcoholic is a person who suffers from
alcoholism - the body is dependent on alcohol. Alcoholism is a chronic
(long-term) disease. Individuals who suffer from alcoholism can develop
gastritis, or pancreas damage. These problems also seriously undermine the
body's ability to digest food, absorb certain vitamins, and produce hormones
which regulate metabolism. Alcohol contains calories, reducing the patient's
feeling of hunger, so he/she consequently may not eat enough proper food to
supply the body with essential nutrients
Poor diet
If a person does not eat enough
food, or if what they eat does not provide them with the nutrients they require
for good health, they suffer from malnutrition. Poor diet may be caused by one
of several different factors. If the patient develops dysphagia (swallowing
difficulties) because of an illness, or when recovering from an illness, they
may not be able to consume enough of the right nutrients.
Underlying Causes
Mental health problems
Some patients with mental health conditions, such as depression, may
develop eating habits which lead to malnutrition. Patients with anorexia
nervosa or bulimia may develop malnutrition because they are ingesting too
little food.
Mobility problems
People with mobility problems may
suffer from malnutrition, simply because they either cannot get out enough to
buy foods, or find preparing them too arduous.
Lack of safe drinking water
Water is synonymous with life. Lack of potable water, poor sanitation, and dangerous hygiene practices increase vulnerability to infectious and water-borne diseases, which are direct causes of acute malnutrition
Poverty
Poverty is far from being eradicated. During
the last two decades, the number of people affected by extreme poverty in
sub-Saharan Africa has nearly doubled, from
164 million in 1982 to some 313 million as of 2002. Poverty alone does not lead
to malnutrition, but it seriously affects the availability of adequate amounts
of nutritious food for the most vulnerable populations. Over 90 percent of
malnourished people live in developing countries.
Lack of
access to food
Most major food
and nutrition crises do not occur because of a lack of food, but rather because
people are too poor to obtain enough food. Non-availability of food in markets,
difficult access to markets due to lack of transportation, and insufficient
financial resources are all factors contributing to the food insecurity of the
most vulnerable populations. People are increasingly dependent on international
markets for all or part of their food supply, particularly between harvest
periods. Many people are increasingly vulnerable due to fluctuations in the
prices, as was recently illustrated during the global food crisis.
Diseases
Certain illnesses and infections, such as
tuberculosis, measles, and diarrhoea are directly linked to acute malnutrition.
A combination of disease and malnutrition weakens the metabolism creating a
vicious cycle of infection and undernourishment, leading to vulnerability to
illness. HIV and AIDS have become a leading cause of acute malnutrition in
developing countries. A child infected with HIV is more vulnerable to acute
malnutrition than a healthy child. Anti-retroviral drugs are more effective
when combined with adequate, regular food intake. So ensuring a healthy diet is
an important aspect of HIV control and treatment.
If the HIV-infected child becomes acutely malnourished, her/his diminished nutritional state will increase the likelihood of infections, and may lower the effectiveness of medications — either anti-retroviral treatment or for other illnesses and infections. When severely malnourished, an individual may not be able to tolerate medications at all. The combination of acute malnutrition and HIV and AIDS thus considerably increases the chances of morbidity, placing the child at a higher risk of death.
If the HIV-infected child becomes acutely malnourished, her/his diminished nutritional state will increase the likelihood of infections, and may lower the effectiveness of medications — either anti-retroviral treatment or for other illnesses and infections. When severely malnourished, an individual may not be able to tolerate medications at all. The combination of acute malnutrition and HIV and AIDS thus considerably increases the chances of morbidity, placing the child at a higher risk of death.
Conflicts
Conflicts have a
direct impact on food security, drastically compromising access to food. Often
forced to flee as violence escalates, people uprooted by conflict lose access
to their farms and businesses, or other means of local food production and
markets. Abandoned fields and farms no longer provide food to broader
distribution circuits. As a result, food supplies to distributors may be cut
off, and the many populations dependent on them may be unable to obtain sufficient
food.
Climate
change
In 30 years, the
number of natural disasters — droughts, cyclones, floods, etc. — linked to
climate change has increased substantially. The effects of climate change are
often dramatic, devastating areas which are already vulnerable. Infrastructure
is damaged or destroyed; diseases spread quickly; people can no longer grow
crops or raise livestock.
According to UN studies in over 40
developing countries, the decline in agricultural production caused either
directly or indirectly by climate change could dramatically increase the number
of people suffering from hunger in the coming years.
Effects of Malnutrition
Out
of the 15 million childhood deaths from malnutrition, about half of these
deaths are caused by protein-energy malnutrition (Water-related diseases,
2008). This type of malnutrition is the most common form of malnutrition
worldwide and occurs when the human body doesn’t consume enough protein and
calories (Water-related diseases, 2008). One of the severe forms of
protein-energy malnutrition is called marasmus (Water-related diseases, 2008).
When a person acquires this condition, his or her body basically disintegrates
to almost nothing. The body’s fat, muscle, and other tissues waste away
(Water-related diseases, 2008). The other form of protein-energy malnutrition
is called kwashiorkor. This condition occurs when the body receives a normal
amount of calories, but not enough protein (Water-related diseases, 2008).
Kwashiorkor affects the properties of the liver and causes inflammation to the
tissues of the body (Water-related diseases, 2008).
When
the body is deficient of essential proteins, other conditions can happen to the
body. When the human diet is lacking in iodine, cretinism and irreversible
brain damage will occur (Water-related diseases, 2008). Cretinism is a severe
stunt in growth due to a lack of thyroid hormones (Cretinism, 2008). The
thyroid hormones use iron in the body to control metabolic rates, protein
synthesis, and cell growth and differentiation in the body (Thyroid hormone,
2008). When humans lack vitamin A, their bodies are susceptible to blindness
and an increase in risk of infection and death (Water-related diseases, 2008).
When
the body is lacking iron, fatigue sets in along with anaemia, splitting
headaches, and glossitis (Grigsby, MD, 2006). Glossitis is an infection on the
tongue (Glossitis, 2008). Anaemia is a state of the body when there are low
levels of haemoglobin, a molecule inside red blood cells (Anaemia, 2008). When
there are low levels of haemoglobin, organs and tissues of the body don’t
receive enough oxygen (Anaemia, 2008).
When there are low levels of vitamin D in the
diet, the human body slows its growth and can contract rickets (Grigsby , MD
Rickets
is the softening of bone which can lead to body deformation and fractures
(Rickets, 2008). When the body lacks zinc, a diminished immune system sets in
and the ability to heal wounds is decreased (Grigsby , MD
Also, hyperpigmentation can be acquired by the
body (Grigsby , MD
Abdominal
changes are another effect of malnutrition (Grigsby , MD Grigsby ,
MD Grigsby , MD
Malnutrition
can also cause negative effects on the body’s skin. Grigsby, MD (2006) states
that the body’s skin becomes dry and can be easily peeled away, leaving raw areas
on the body (p. 4). Also, hyperpigmented plaques grow over these raw areas on
the body (Grigsby , MD Grigsby , MD Grigsby , MD
Through
malnutrition, chronic illnesses and diseases can be easily acquired as well.
One chronic illness that correlates with malnutrition is cystic fibrosis (Grigsby , MD Grigsby , MD
Malnutrition’s
effects are especially hazardous to children. Grigsby, MD (2006) states that
children who have malnutrition can experience dwarfism (p. 4). Also, these
children can experience prematurity and developmental delays (Grigsby , MD
Solutions for Malnutrition
Even
though there are many causes of malnutrition, and its effects are powerful and
widespread, there are ways for the world to fight back against malnutrition.
The main solution for malnutrition is humanitarian actions. The World Food
Program (WFP) is a major humanitarian group and accounts for more than one-half
of the food shipments to Africa (Haile, 2005).
In 1999, the WFP assisted 20 million people in Africa
and the number has risen to 36.4 million people helped in 2003 and more than 60
million in 2011.
Humanitarian
programs like the WFP are only as effective as their plan of action and
funding. These humanitarian groups rely on funding from the government and
donations of money and food from people around the world
Besides
donating money and food to programs, starting centres that nurse people back to
health cuts down on the cases of malnutrition.
Besides
volunteering and donating food and money, teaching good farming practices
raises food production. Haile (2005) says that farmers use traditional
agricultural calendars created years ago that don’t coincide with today’s
weather patterns (p. 2180). Teaching farmers seasonal forecasts helps them make
favourable decisions for their agricultural strategies (Haile, 2005). Farmers
who follow seasonal forecasts are able to make good planting schedules by
knowing when to use certain fertilizers or plant certain seeds depending upon
the climate and season (Haile, 2005). Also, seasonal forecasts help farmers
predict when the rainy season begins (Haile, 2005).
Teaching
agricultural monitoring also helps farmers with food production like Oxfam does
in Africa and other affected areas. Farmers
must calculate the start of season (SoS) in order to know when the agricultural
season begins (Haile, 2005). Agricultural monitoring also needs farmers to
monitor the length of growing period (LGP), which is the time between the SoS
and end of the season (Haile, 2005). Agricultural monitoring informs farmers
about the length of the upcoming rainy season and the critical periods of when
to plant and pick crops (Haile, 2005).
Politicians
should not be selfish and think of the people to avoid man made malnutrition.
Wars and conflicts only make things worse for civilians.
Compiled by Abigal Muchecheti
Author, Married to a Devil
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