Problems of Malnutrition - Essay Example

?Sur Lecturer Nutrition This paper provides an overview of the problems that exist in relation to malnutrition and the youngster population in the state of Utah. Malnutrition is a condition caused by eating a diet that lacks nutrients in excess usually in high intake or wrong proportion. The beginning of this condition depends on the under or over abundant nutrients in the diet. In most cases, this condition is in the form of under-nutrition which is mainly caused by a diet lacking adequate calories and proteins not enough food and of poor quality (Tontisirin and Pattanee 30-32). According to the World Hunger Education Service website, in 2010 more than half of the world's hungry lived in Asia and the Pacific. The next largest region of malnourished people was Sub-Saharan Africa, then Latin America and the Caribbean, followed by the Near East and North Africa; the smallest populations of hungry people live in developed countries. The site also stated that undernourished children are also likely to suffer up to 160 days of illness per year (Maurer 50-51).  As much as the United States government invests a certain percentage of the development assistance in programs that caters for the malnutrition issue, food insecurity in Utah represents a big obstacle that challenges this social investment. Malnutrition is a very unhealthy condition to anyone but it can’t get any worse for children since they are very vulnerable and it may cause long term consequences that can end up affecting their mental health, physical growth and cognitive development (Tontisirin and Pattanee 36-37). There are several causes of malnutrition among the youngsters in the State of Utah; a) Diseases and infections. b) Poor dietary practices. c) Poverty and high food prices. d) Poor agricultural productivity among other Children who do not get enough food will always experience hunger, and over the long term, this leads to malnutrition. However, a child can get malnourished not because of hunger alone but also because he/she doesn’t eat foods that provide the right minerals, nutrients and vitamins (Maurer 53-54). There are also some conditions and diseases that prevent children from digesting or absorbing their food properly, for example children with Cystic Fibrosis experience trouble in absorbing nutrients since the disease affects the pancreas which is an organ necessary for producing enzymes that are responsible for digestion. Also a child who does not get enough of specific nutrient has nutritional deficiency which is also a form of malnutrition. The most common nutritional deficiency in the United States especially in Utah State is the Iron Deficiency which leads to anemia (Cope 62-64). However, emergency measures together with long term measures have been put into place to ensure the condition is under control by several private and public organizations like the World Food, UNICEF and WHO. Among the emergency measures put into place is the provision of deficient micronutrients through fortified sachet powders or directly through sachets. The private and public organizations have also recommend community management of severe malnutrition therapeutic foods that are seen to cause weight gain. There are also locally self help groups created in the State of Utah to aid in enhancing the emergency measures through rewarding the hungry with cash vouchers or cash in order to give wages to the local farmers rather than purchasing food from the developed donor countries (Maurer 55-57). Among the long term measures put in place include in the Utah State include fostering nutritionally dense agriculture by increasing the yields while ensuring negative consequences affecting the yields in future are reduced (Cope 65-66). There have been developed some three measures for detecting malnutrition in children; 1) Extremely low weight for age. 2) Extremely low height for age. 3) Extremely low weight for height. Children usually face malnutrition during the age of rapid development which can have long lasting effects on health. Most children suffering from this condition are usually very thin with swollen hands and feet. However, there are several symptoms to detect malnutrition; Fatigue and low energy, dizziness, swollen and bleeding gums, bloated stomach, muscle weakness, decaying teeth, dry and scaly skin and lastly poor immune function. In the Utah State, common foods with minerals and vitamins are fortified by food manufacturers in order to prevent some deficiencies in nutrition. For example, the adding of iodine to salt aids in preventing thyroid gland problems (i.e. goiter), addition of folic acid to foods helps prevent certain birth defects, and adding iron helps prevent iron-deficiency anemia. Malnutrition affects children mostly infants and adolescents suffer the most because many nutrients are critical for normal growth and development (Semba and Martin 74-76). Teens and children under special diets like the vegetarian groups require a variety of meals and a balanced diet so as to acquire the needed food nutrients. For example, vegans and vegetarians should ensure most of their food or meals have sufficient vitamins (B12) and protein. Among the health behavior theories is the health promotion theories that help clarify the complicated problems of malnutrition (Tontisirin and Pattanee 45-48). It states that promoting health is probably the most ethical, effective, efficient and sustainable approach to achieve good health. This theory teaches a lot and promotes human health n several ways; It improves the human lifestyles and health and reduces risk factors affecting health and environment. It keeps on reorienting the health systems and necessary infrastructure support to bring about the desired changes in the health sector regarding malnutrition (Semba and Martin 78-81). Therefore this theory simply does the following to help in the prevention and controlling of malnutrition in Utah State: a) Promote social responsibility for health. b) Increase investment in health development. c) Consolidate and expand partnerships for health. d) Increase community capacity and empower the individual. e) Secure an infrastructure for health promotion. In conclusion, malnutrition is a condition caused by eating a diet that lacks nutrients in excess usually in high intake or wrong proportion. The beginning of malnutrition condition depends on the under or over abundant nutrients in the diet. In many instances, malnutrition condition is majorly in the form of under-nutrition which is mainly results from a diet lacking adequate calories and proteins, insufficient food, and poor quality meals. Although malnutrition is a very unhealthy condition to anyone, it can’t get any worse for children because they are very vulnerable and it may result in long term implications that can affect their cognitive development, mental health, and physical growth. Children who do not have access to enough specific nutrients are at risk of nutritional deficiency: a form of malnutrition. Teens and children under special diets like the vegetarian groups require a variety of meals and a balanced diet so as to acquire the needed food nutrients. An emergency measure put into place is the provision of deficient micronutrients through fortified sachet powders or directly through sachets. Community management of severe malnutrition therapeutic foods has also been recommended as measures to curb malnutrition (Semba and Martin 82-85). Promoting health is probably the most ethical, effective, efficient and sustainable approach to achieve good health. Works Cited Cope, Kathy. Malnutrition in the Elderly: A National Crisis. S.l.: Diane Pub Co, 2006. Print. Maurer, Donna. Eating Agendas: Food and Nutrition As Social Problems. New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 2005. Print. Semba, Richard D, and Martin W. Bloem. Nutrition and Health in Developing Countries. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press, 2008. Print. Tontisirin, Kraisid, and Pattanee Winichagoon. Malnutrition As a Social Indicator: Nutrition Problems in Thailand. Bangkok?: Mahidol University?, 2002. Print. Read More