Under-nutrition
It does not occur in a single day’s food intake. Deficiency caused by under-nutrition affects us after long term of negligence. An under-nourished child cannot grow fully, physically and mentally. In most of the developing countries, under-nutrition is a threat to public health as it leads to illness and even death. In addition to inadequate intake of nutrients, under-nutrition is also the result of malabsorption of food, addiction to drugs or loss of nutrients from body due to various medical reasons. Under-nutrition may lead to deficiency diseases, like protein deficiency diseases which include kwashiorkor, marusmus, mineral deficiency diseases like goitre, anaemia; and vitamin deficiency diseases like scurvy, beriberi and rickets.
Ignorance, lack of education and poverty led by relatively high food prices, natural disasters causing insufficient agricultural productivity and unhealthy dietary practices are some important common causes of under-nutrition. Undernutrition continues to be a significant health problem for children and adults in India. The National Family Health Survey 3 (NFHS) reported that in our country the prevalence of under-nutrition is high among children. At present, 40 per cent children of less than five years of age in our country are underweight.
For the management of under-nutrition, improvement in nutritional status is required. The Government of India provides mid-day meals to the students of up to elementary stage during school hours.
Many myths and taboos about diet are also responsible for under-nutrition in our country. Due to ignorance and illiteracy, locally available nutritious food is not eaten. In case of new born babies, inadequate breastfeeding is a major cause of undernutrition. In fact, exclusive breast feeding during the first six months of life is very important.
Over-nutrition
Over-nutrition is also a form of malnutrition that results from overeating and excessive intake of specific nutrients like carbohydrate and fat. Inadequate exercise and overeating are the major causes of overweight. Due to intake of excessive food, adipose tissue increases abnormally in the body that enlarges or the number of fat cells increase leading to obesity. We find obese persons bulky and overweight because of the accumulation of fat in the body. People who eat more need to burn more calories, otherwise surplus calories are stored as fat.
In modern societies obesity has become an epidemic. It occurs in both developed and developing countries and affects children as well as adults. In addition to overeating and inactivity, the major reasons of overweight and obesity are sedentary life style, emotional problems and physiological disturbances including genetic factors. Metabolic and digestive disorders take place due to overconsumption of fats, fast foods, soft drinks and refined white flour carbohydrates, combined with low fibre intake.
Overweight and obese children and adolescents frequently grow to become obese adults. Obesity tends to run in families, suggesting a genetic link too, as families share common dietary and physical activity patterns, attitude, lifestyle and habits which contribute to obesity. Planning for balanced diet and regular exercise is of utmost importance to prevent overweight and obesity.
Assessing the BMI
Body Mass Index (BMI) is an index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify adults as underweight, overweight and obese. It is obtained by dividing the weight in kilograms by the square of the height in metres (kg/m2). For example, an adult who weighs 70kg and whose height is 1.75m will have a BMI of 22.9.
BMI Chart
