Deficiency beliefs

Risks from Extremes Overinvesting and Deficiency Beliefs 122... 

Such deficiency beliefs continually criticize efforts and attack self-esteem. At best, the occasional triumph brings only momentary relief because it is seen as an exception to the rule. "Sure, I got 98 percent on the exam, but that just shows how far below that score I usually achieve." Deficiency beliefs can cause the only child to dismiss or discount performance data to the contrary. 

When extremely conscientious parents see their only child pushed into unhappiness by these deficiency beliefs, they may urge the boy or girl not to be so hard on himself or herself, even offering themselves as a negative example to avoid. "We ve always put too much pressure on ourselves. Never being satisfied. No room for mistakes. It s not a happy way to be. We can speak from experience. Don t be like us "... 

To avoid the temptation of extremes, and to diminish the development of deficiency beliefs that they engender,... 

Obviously, regulation of food intake depends on many neurotransmitters and hormones but this final section will outline the role played by central 5-HT transmission in this process. It had been the belief for some time that increased 5-HT transmission in the brain reduces food intake (Blundell 1977) and this certainly explains the satiety in rats that follows infusion of 5-HT into the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus. However, recent studies using microdialysis have found that 5-HT efflux in the lateral hypothalamus is itself increased by food intake, suggesting the existence of a feedback control system. In fact, because the increase in 5-HT efflux is greater in genetically obese rats than in their lean counterparts, it has been proposed that there is a deficiency in the 5-HT inhibition of food intake in obesity. 

Alcohol consumption is very difficult to assess. There is widespread belief that individuals underreport their intake and there are no reliable laboratory tests available for definitive diagnosis of alcohol abuse. A combination of abnormalities in the plasma activity of gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT or yGT), AST and reduction in erythrocyte mean cell volume (MCV) maybe useful and all are routine lab. tests. A potential marker of interest is carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) which is an abnormal isoform of serum transferrin arising due to defects in the attachment of carbohydrate chains to the protein core. Unfortunately, CDT is a somewhat specialized test, not performed by most laboratories. Other markers which have attracted some research interest are ethyl sulphate and ethyl glucuronide. Excretion in the urine of these metabolites occurs for up to 50 hours after binge drinking so they offer a useful index of recent heavy alcohol intake. 

As discussed in detail by Dillard et al. and by Mittman et al. the possible relationship of lysosomal proteases to chronic lung disease has been inferred from the finding of an increased incidence of emphysema in subjects deficient in serum ai>antitrypsin factor, an -globulin that can inhibit lysosomal proteases. (No effect of ozone on serum aj-antitrypsin inhibitor was noted in rabbits chronically exposed to ozone. ) Thus, an ozone-induced increase in concentrations of such enzymes in the lung might produce excess proteolysis and result in eventual chronic lung disease. However, the available evidence is inadequate to support the belief that such a process occurs in humans intermittently exposed to ozone. Further studies of this potential hazard would be of value. 

Recommended dietary allowances for vitamins have proved to be useful guidelines however it has to be appreciated that these guidelines are not more than estimates made from experiments on only a limited number of subjects. These recommended dietary allowances also need periodic reevaluation. While vitamin deficiencies due to inadequate intakes are encountered in developing countries, few cases are seen in the Western world apart from patients with an increased risk for deficiencies such as diabetics or alcoholics. On the contrary, the widely held belief that vitamins promote better health is deceptive and may lead to overdose disorders. 

Levodopa (L-dopa) is a natural intermediate in the biosynthesis of catecholamines in the brain and peripheral adrenergic nerve terminals. In the biologic sequence of events it is converted to dopamine, which in turn serves as a substrate of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine. Levodopa is used successfully in the treatment of Parkinson s syndrome, a disease characterized by dopamine deficiency. When levodopa is administered to an individual with this syndrome, the symptoms of Parkinson s disease are ameliorated, presumably because the drug is converted to dopamine and thereby counteracts the deficiency. Individuals treated with levodopa, especially older men, have been observed to experience a sexual rejuvenation. This effect has led to the belief that levodopa stimulates sexual powers. Consequently, studies with younger men complaining of decreased erectile ability have shown that levodopa increases libido and the incidence of penile erections. Overall, however, these effects are short lived and do not reflect continued satisfactory sexual function and potency. Thus, levodopa is not a true aphrodisiac. The increased sexual activity experienced by parkinsonian patients treated with levodopa may reflect improved well-being and partial recovery of normal sexual functions that were impaired by Parkinson s disease. 

It is apparent that at this stage of development definitive conclusions are premature, and that this aspect of amino acid and lipide metabolism will be pursued vigorously in the near future. It is of considerable interest to us that biotin and pantothenic acid deficiencies affect amino acid transport in L. arabinosus, since both vitamins are known to play a prominent role in lipide biosynthesis. We are currently reexamining the turnover of lipide fractions in nutritionally normal and vitamin-deficient cell types to determine whether there is some relation between this aspect of metabolism and amino acid transport. In any case, the nature of the catalytic steps involved in amino acid transport is still unknown to us. They probably occur in the peripheral cell membrane, but even this elementary and widely accepted belief will require additional study before it can be accepted beyond doubt as an established fact. 

By the mid-60s there was a strong consensus that depression, at least in its severe endogenous form, was caused by an abnormal biochemical state consisting of reduced levels of monoamines in the brain. The theory was set out systematically in a well-known paper by Schildkraut (1965), who concentrated on the role of noradrenalin (Schildkraut 1965). Other authors focused on serotonin (Coppen 1967). Schildkraut asserted that some if not all depressions are associated with an absolute or relative deficiency of catecholamines, particularly norepinephrine. .. elation may conversely be associated with an excess of such amines (Schildkraut 1965, p. 509). The primary justification for the theory was the belief that stimulants and antidepressant drugs acted to increase monoamine levels. Schildkraut referred to how the supposed efficacy of imipramine had initially cast doubt on the theory, but the riddle had been solved by Axelrod s research on its ability to block tissue reuptake of noradrenalin. 

The relationship between siderophore production and bacterial growth rates has led to the belief that siderophore prodnction contribntes to bacterial viralence. Rednced viralence of mntants deficient in siderophore production have been reported for Yersinia pestis, the cansative agent of... 

There is a wide variation of deficiencies between energy and protein deficient diseases as in the cases described by marasmus and kwashiorkor. The term protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) is used to describe those differences. PEM is the result of poverty as well inadequate information on diet. In some countries there is the mistaken belief that the child should not be given high protein food, which is served to the father, while the child drinks the fluid the meat was cooked in. 

Leukocyte ascorbic acid concentrations are generally considered to provide a better reflection of tissue stores than other blood components. Supporting evidence for this belief includes observations such as (i) leukocyte ascorbate levels drop slowly during ascorbic acid deficiency. 

Deficiency beliefsintemalized beliefs about himself or herself that cause the child to feel inadequate or inferior no matter how hard he or she strives to prove otherwise. 

The pharmacologists and clinical chemists interest in succinylcholine arose from the belief that the hydrolysis, and therefore inactivation, of the drug was brought about by the action of cholinesterase, and that in cases of prolonged response, the patient had a deficiency of the enzyme. The investigation of this thesis led to the discovery of the genetically determined variants of cholinesterase, which are described in Section 2. 

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