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Information on Malnutrition:
Anyone who is exposed to the risk of malnutrition because of sociological, medical or surgical conditions
should be given supplements as a preventative measure. Elderly or compromised people often have a combination
of poor appetite linked to loss of taste or use of certain medications, difficulty with eating because of lack of teeth or
poorly fitting dentures, poor absorption due to lack of stomach acid, and increased nutrient requirements cause by chronic
diseases and use of medications. These people should be given liquid food supplements plus complete vitamin and mineral supplements
(a wide variety of such products are available at your local pharmacy -- use liquid preparations if possible because they
are absorbed more easily), before they develop malnutrition. Unfortunately, this kind of intervention is seldom used.
If one or more of the below symptoms occur, you may be developing malnutrition and you
should consult a doctor or go to your local clinic for a check-up.
A total lack of any one of the many important nutrients we must have to stay healthy will cause illness,
and eventually death, if it's withheld in it's entirety for a long enough period of time. That's why they are called "essential
nutrients." We just can't do without them.
Individuals who are dependent on others for their
nourishment may be at risk for primary malnutrition. Secondary malnutrition may occur in people whose food
intake is disturbed because of poor appetite or faulty digestion, absorption or use of nutrients in the body. Practically
all diseases and many surgical procedures can interfere with appetite or food uptake and cause malnutrition.
Malnutrition may be mild enough to show no symptoms or so severe that the damage it has done is irreversible
even though the individual may be kept alive.
How Does Malnutrition Occur?
Malnutrition means a person's body is not getting enough nutrients. The condition may result from
an inadequate or unbalanced diet, digestive difficulties, absorption problems, or other medical conditions. It's a Chronic
Condition which injures Spleen and Stomach.
Malnutrition can occur because of the lack of a single vitamin in
the diet, or it can be because the person isn't getting enough food. Starvation is a form of malnutrition. Malnutrition can
also occur when nutrients ARE adequately consumed in the diet, but one or more nutrients are not digested or absorbed properly.
How is Malnutrition Diagnosed?
The doctor or clinic will weigh patients and measure their height and skin fold thickness.
If these simple procedures identify an adult who is grossly underweight or stunted, a full physical examination should be
performed. The doctor or nurse will check for signs of water retention, changes in skin and hair, liver enlargement and abdominal
swelling. The doctor will also take a blood sample and request a number of biochemical tests to identify protein, vitamin
and mineral deficiencies.
People suffering from malnutrition associated with various medical conditions should receive dietetic counseling
and/or food or vitamin and mineral supplements.
What Are The Symptoms of Malnutrition?
General Physical: Eyes unusually bright or dull. Fatigue, dizziness, weight loss
and decreased immune response. Irregular cravings. Vitamin and mineral malnutrition is characterized by individual signs and
symptoms depending on the vitamin or mineral that is deficient; for example, iron deficiency produces anemia, , hair loss,
etc
Hair: loss, stiff, wiring hair that look unkempt. Light color then normal
[pigmentation loss]. Hair can be pulled out with a gentle tug vs hard pull. |
What Are The Symptoms of Malnutrition? continued
Eyes: The eye lids can be inflamed or swollen and the cornea of the eye, or that
clear outer layer over the iris of the eye, can become soft. The inner surfaces of the eye lids can get thicker as well as
the outer layer of the eye ball itself. The blueness of the whites of the eyes may disappear. As the symptoms worsen, the
thickened outer layers of the eye and inner layers of the eye lid may create a glazed, porcelain-like appearance that can
actually hide the small capillaries that are making the eyes red. Holding the eye open and asking the subject to roll their
eyes around, you may see what appears like a dull, lusterless or roughened surface on the eyes, created by that thickened
layer of outer tissue.
Face: Angular wrinkles radiating out from the mouth become more pronounced
when the mouth is held half open. As malnutrition increases, these lines can turn into scars. The soft skin (it's not really
skin but rather a mucous membrane) found inside the mouth can protrude out so it's seen as part of the lips. The lips can
be reddened with sores and deep cracks may be found in the corners of the mouth. The small area between the top of the upper
lip and the nose can have a definite greasy, yellow scaling that is more easily seen when it's scratched with a fingernail.
Glands: Check for a swollen thyroid gland just below the Adams apple. This
gland, when abnormally large, can be clearly visible in the form of a goiter. There are four Parotid that
generate saliva, two glands of them are towards the back of the jaw, one on each side. Malnutritioned people's glands
would be enlarged, like the mumps.
Inside The Mouth: The taste
buds cover the top of normal tongues. In cases of malnutrition, the taste buds can disappear. The sides and top of the mouth
can appear more red in color and there will often be sores inside the mouth. There can also be white patches of fungus growing
on the tongue. This same symptom is also found in advanced AIDS patients and is a sure sign the immune system is shutting
down. It can be painful to eat because of all these sores in the mouth.
Muscles: The muscles waste away. This is because of famine mechanisms built into
our makeup tell the body to use up a good percentage of the muscle first as energy before it uses the fat - holding the fat
in reserve for really tough times. Aside from the obvious signs of muscle loss, the undue degree of the folding skin on the
buttocks or the jelly like feel of the muscles that still remain are also good signs. Of course, the obvious muscular signs
of malnutrition are the lack of muscle tone and in progressed cases, the skeletal look of the body.
Psychological: Unresponsive or distinerested in what' s happening around you.
Listlessness, tiredness and apathy may also occur. Dull spirit, possible irritability, and poor memory.
Skin: Dull, yellow, complexion. Xerosis - a clinical term used to describe
dry and crinkled skin that looks worse visibly by moving one piece of skin parallel to the skin next to it. This can be easily
done by grabbing an arm or ankle with both hands then twisting each wrist in a different direction. The skin can be tight
from excess fluids just under the skin caused by edema. Edema is little bumps, or indentations down to the skin and hides
how much the muscle actually has been lost. Skin color loss, including color under fingernails. Follicular
Hyperkeratosis which is like goose bumps that don't go away when you're warm.
Teeth: The teeth can have a lot of decay. There can be paper white areas on the enamel
of the tooth ranging from a few specks to the whole tooth. The teeth can also have a brown stain on them accompanied by various
degrees of pitting because of decay. In addition, the teeth can have a general corroded appearance. The gums can be red and
swollen which would include all the gums, not just a spot or two between teeth. There can also be puss oozing out of the gums
from the bone below the gum line. The bones that hold the teeth in place can break down. This bone can become thin and fragile
- easily broken, and as a result the teeth can easily come out. |
