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Nutritionist, Charles Nkwoala Warns Of The Implications Of Protein Deficiency For Children Under-five

Nutritionist, Charles Nkwoala Warns Of The Implications Of Protein Deficiency For Children Under-five

A community nutritionist and nutrition educator, Mr. Charles Nkwoala, says children and women, especially pregnant and lactating women, are most affected by protein deficiency. According to Nkwoala, who is the National General Secretary of the Nutrition Society of Nigeria, in children under-five, protein deficiency can lead to retarded growth, poor cognitive development, lowered immunity, fatigue, and lack of concentration.

The nutritionist disclosed this to PUNCH HealthWise, stressing that children are affected because of their high protein requirement for growth and development.

READ ALSO: University Don, Adetunji Lawrence On Why Households In Nigeria Need To Ramp Up On Protein Consumption

Nkwoala, who is a lecturer in the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State, notes that the immediate cause of protein deficiency is mainly related to inadequate intake of protein-rich foods such as meat, fish, eggs, milk, legumes and also the presence of diseases.

He said,

“For us to appreciate the reason for the rise in protein deficiency in Nigeria, especially among children, we need to know the causes of protein deficiency. There are about three levels of causes — immediate cause, underlying cause and basic cause.

“The immediate cause is predisposed by the underlying cause, which is mainly due to household food insecurity, inadequate care, sanitation and access to health care, which are also hinged on lack of nutrition education.

“The basic cause of protein deficiency is poverty, unemployment and lack of basic infrastructures. If you consider the fact that Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world and the predominant lack of basic amenities and poor health care system, it will be clear that protein deficiency will always be on the increase.

“Protein deficiency has serious health implications. Bearing in mind that protein is a major component of almost all parts of the body – blood (haemoglobin), eye, muscle, hair, it then becomes obvious that its deficiency can lead to several health risks such as anaemia, retarded growth, eye problems and even death.

“Children and women especially pregnant and lactating women are most affected by protein deficiency.

“Children are affected because of their high protein requirement for growth and development. Pregnant women and lactating women also require protein for the proper growth of the foetus and for milk production respectively.”

The nutritionist pointed out that protein deficiency could have negative consequences on pregnant women and their foetuses.

He said that deficiency in protein could lead to anaemia, which he noted is one of the major causes of maternal mortality during pregnancy.

Giving further insight into the health implications of protein deficiency, Nkwoala said,

“The foetus is not left out; a woman that is deficient in protein during pregnancy has the risk of losing the foetus.

“The foetus may also be born with low birth weight, which is a result of retarded organs such as brain, pancreas, lungs, heart etc, which predisposes the baby to several health issues in adult hood such as diabetes, hypertension and also limited productivity.

“In children under-five, protein deficiency can lead to retarded growth, poor cognitive development, lowered immunity, fatigue and lack of concentration.

“These consequences may be irreversible and affect all aspects of the child’s development even in education attainment and productivity later in life.”

The World Health Organisation says in low-income countries, inadequate amounts of food (causing conditions such as child malnutrition and retarded growth) and inadequate diversity of food (causing deficiency of vital micronutrients such as vitamins, minerals or trace elements) continue to be priority health problems.

The UN health agency notes that malnutrition in all its forms, increases the risk of disease and early death, adding that most of the malnutrition-related neurological disorders are preventable.

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According to UNICEF, Nigeria has the second-highest burden of stunted children in the world, with a national prevalence rate of 32 percent of children under-five.

“An estimated two million children in Nigeria suffer from severe acute malnutrition, but only two out of every 10 children affected is currently reached with treatment.

Seven percent of women of childbearing age also suffer from acute malnutrition”,

says UNICEF.

Recommending ways of tackling protein deficiency, the nutritionist said,

“The fight against protein deficiency should be fought from the basic cause, which entails creating opportunity to lift people out of poverty, provide infrastructures and access to basic amenities such as access to health care facilities.

“These will provide opportunity for individuals and households to have unhindered access to available, affordable, safe and nutritious foods.

“However, households and individuals need adequate nutrition education in order to know how to combine locally available foods to make nutritious and safe meals for their children and other vulnerable groups in the household.

“They should also maximise their resources in diversifying the foods they consume to meet their nutritional requirements.”

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