Implications of Protein Deficiency

Implications of Protein Deficiency

When a person has deficiency of protein in their diet, they can become

victims of protein energy malnutrition. The malnutrition of protein

has many health effects. There are two types of protein energy

malnutrition, the first type is acute protein energy malnutrition,

children who are recently deprived of food, the effect of it is

characterised in children by thinness for their height. The second

type is chronic protein energy malnutrition, this occurs in children

due to long term deprivation of food and as a result the child’s

height is affected. Protein energy malnutrition can be further

classified into marasmus and kwashiorkor. These diseases are

specifically related protein deficiency.

Marasmus is caused by severe deprivation of protein and energy due to

long term lack of food intake. The disease results of the wasting of

muscles and heart, therefore the body becomes very weak. The lack of

protein intake has an impact on body weight; the victim suffering from

marasmus will have little or no fat under the skin to insulate from

cold as a result the body becomes vulnerable to infections. The

disease most commonly strikes in children of 16-18 months. However, in

the UK there is a high number of teenagers who suffer from anorexia

nervosa, as a result they also suffer from marasmus due to lack of

protein intake, the sufferer has a physical appearance of just skin

and bones. The internal body functioning is disrupted, the basal

metabolic rate slows down, the heart begins to pump in an irregular

rhythm, and supply blood inefficiently, the heart muscle becomes thin

and blood pressure falls. Other clinical features that are apparent

are dry skin and thinning of hair and it is easily pulled out. The

gastrointestinal tract (the digestive tract) becomes deteriorated;

therefore food, which is taken into the body, is rejected due to the

failure of gastrointestinal providing sufficient digestive enzymes to

absorb the food. Moreover the production of digestive enzyme in the

pancreas starts to decline, the victim suffers from diarrhoea.