Starvation marasmus

A variety of symptoms, not mentioned earlier, have also been associated with zinc deficiency. Zinc deficiency is thought to delay woxmd healing, impair the senses of taste and smell, and impair the functions of the immune system. (The impaired sense of taste is called hypogettsia.) Severe zinc deficiency results in impairment of the immune system and increased infections. These problems have been found in the severe deficiencies that occur in starvation (marasmus) and acrodermatitis enteropathica and in studies with animals. The immune system involves a large array of hormones, hormone receptor proteins, signaling proteins, and DNA-binding proteins, some of which require zinc for activity. It is not clear which of these components is most sensitive to zinc deficiency. 

Low-protein and low-calorie intake. This is the case of starvation leading to severe emaciation and marasmus. Dietary fluctuations in protein intake have been considered in Section 3.3. Low-protein diets... 

Marasmus results from a diet deficient both in protein and calories. Persistent starvation ultimately results in death. 

Marasmus results from deficiency of protein and energy intake, as in starvation, and results in generalized wasting (atrophy of muscles and subcutaneous tissues, emaciation, loss of adipose tissue) Edema occurs in kwashiorkor but not in marasmus however, the distinction between these disorders is not always clear. The treatment of marasmus requires supplementation of protein and energy intake. 

Malnutrition and its ultimate form starvation arise from many different causes and are present even in affluent societies. The case description reveals that the child lives in a third-world country, and the physical findings reveal that the child suflJ ers from protein-calorie-deficient starvation, or marasmus. 

Patients with advanced cancer, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and a number of other chronic diseases are frequently undernourished. Physically they show all the signs of marasmus, but there is considerably more loss of body protein than occurs in starvation. The condition is called cachexia, from the Greek Ka% io for in a poor condition ). A number of factors contribute to the problem ... 

In kwashiorkor there is less breakdown of protein and release of amino acids from muscle than in marasmus since provision of adequate energy in the diet reduces the adrenal cortical response to starvation and, consequently, the flow of amino acids from muscle to viscera. The release of amino acids from muscle is, therefore, not sufficient to meet the needs of the internal organs. 

Kwashiorkor—Infants fed low-protein, starchy foods such as bananas, yams, and cassava after weaning may develop kwashiorkor. This imbalanced diet, which has a subnormal protein-to-calorie ratio for infants, prevents some of the adaptive mechanisms of the body from operating the way that they do in the case of starvation or marasmus—a wasting condition due to lack of food. 

Impaired mental development. Nutritional deprivation will most likely have a lasting effect on children if it occurs during the first year of life. Studies on the brains of infants who died from starvation at less than 1 year of age showed a significant reduction (15 to 20%) in the number of brain cells. Smaller head circumferences of children who suffer from marasmus early in life are indicative of proportionate reductions in brain size. Itelligence tests have shown that such children do not seem to catch up in mental development by 6 years of age. However, when starvation occurs after 2 or 3 years of age, the effect on learning is temporary, since brain tissue is not affected once complete development of the brain has occurred. 

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