Angela Onwuzoo As several Nigerian households are feeling the brunt of the economic hardship that has engulfed the country, children under the age of five with protein deficiency may suffer from anaemia, eye problems, and other serious health challenges if not addressed, nutrition experts have said. Besides children, the nutritionists also disclosed that women, especially pregnant and lactating mothers were also affected by protein deficiency. The term protein deficiency represents a state of deficit in body protein or one or more of the essential amino acids.
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 priorities for 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. Speaking exclusively with PUNCH Healthwise, the nutritionists said children were major affected by protein deficiency because of their high protein requirement for growth and development.
A community nutritionist and nutrition educator, Charles Nkwoala, told our correspondent that protein deficiency in children under-five could lead to retarded growth, eye problems, poor cognitive development, lowered immunity.