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Malnutrition side effects: know them

What are the effects of malnutrition on the body? And what diseases may it cause? Learn more details after reading this article.

Malnutrition is the lack of access to calories and nutrients that the body needs, or access to many calories and an unbalanced diet. What are the effects of malnutrition on the human body? This is what we will learn in this article:

The effects of malnutrition on adults

There are several disadvantages adults may face due to poor nutrition, such as:

1. Weight loss

Malnourished people lose weight because they do not take enough vitamins or elements that the body needs, and weight loss can be distinguished as one of the damages of malnutrition by noting the following:

• Losing 5-10% of the weight within 3-6 months without planning to do so.
• BMI less than 18.5.
• Clothes, jewelry, and belts become more and more spacious as the days go by.

2. A decrease in muscle strength and immunity

The immune system weakens so that it becomes less able to fight infections, and the muscles are affected as follows:

• Decreased ability to move and perform daily tasks, such as cooking and bathing.
• Blood clots are caused by immobility.
• Frequent falls.
• heart failure

3. Failure of kidney function

The kidneys become less able to regulate the proportion of fluids and salts, which leads to excess fluid or dehydration.

4. Mental damage

Mental damage is one of the damages of malnutrition, which may be represented by some things, such as apathy, depression, introversion, or self-neglect.

5. Reduce the level of fertility

Malnutrition leads to a decrease in fertility, but if it affects a pregnant woman, it may increase the chances of the fetus in the future suffering from diabetes or heart problems.

6. Other damage

A person suffers from several other disadvantages of malnutrition, such as:

• Sunken eyes and hollow cheeks.
• difficulty concentrating
• Fatigue and general fatigue.
• Constant feeling of cold.
• Aches in the joints.
• Swelling in the tongue.
• Increased sensitivity to light.

The effects of malnutrition on children

Disadvantages of malnutrition in children:

1. Stop growing within the normal range.
2. A change in behavior, such as being constantly angry or slow.
3. Tired faster than peers.

Diseases caused by malnutrition

Some diseases may result from poor nutrition, such as:

1. Kwashiorkor

Kwashiorkor disease is one of the damages of malnutrition caused by a lack of proteins in the body for a long time and causes swelling in many places of the body, such as the face, hands, and feet.

Hair may also change color to become yellowish or red, in addition to flaking of the skin.

2. Severe wasting (Marasmus)

Severe wasting results from the severe lack of proteins and calories in the diet, and is represented by softening of the bones, weight loss and difficulty in gaining it, and the atrophy of fat mass, so the person appears emaciated.

3. Anemia

Anemia is caused by a lack of iron in the diet, and it must be compensated for those who can eat malnourished people by eating certain foods, such as:

• fig.
• dates.
• watermelon;
• Cereals and legumes.
• Raisins.

4. Diseases caused by vitamin deficiency

Some diseases result from poor diet and lack of some vitamins and minerals, including:

• Decreased ability to resist infections, in addition to the appearance of a rash as a result of zinc deficiency.
• Nerve problems due to vitamin B12 deficiency.
• Scurvy due to vitamin C deficiency.
• Night blindness due to vitamin A deficiency.