NUTRITIONAL STATUS - National Institute of Open Schooling

1 HOME SCIENCEMODULE - 2 Foods and NutritionNotes 91 NUTRITIONAL StatusYou know that we need food to grow. The food that you eat is digested andabsorbed in your body. The diet provides nutrients which are required invarying amounts in different parts of the body. These nutrients are utilisedby the body for performing specific functions. This means that good nutri-tion is the basic component of good health. You have read about balanceddiet. Do you remember that it is of utmost importance in achieving normalgrowth and development and for maintaining good health througout life?When your diet provides the nutrients in incorrect amounts, either very lessor in excess of what is required, it results in an imbalance of nutrients in yourbody. This condition is responsible for various diseases, slow or no growthof body and it can even lead to know that young children, pregnant women and lactating mothers com-monly suffer from health problems arising due to inadequate nutrition.

2 Thereare several NUTRITIONAL programmes prevailing in our country in order to solvethis this lesson, you will learn about the meaning of NUTRITIONAL STATUS and theways of assessing it. You will also learn about the various NUTRITIONAL dis-eases and different on-going nutrition programmes aimed to prevent andcontrol these problems in our studying this lesson, you should be able to: define the terms " NUTRITIONAL STATUS " and malnutrition; explain the types and causes of malnutrition; discuss simple ways to assess NUTRITIONAL STATUS ;6 NUTRITIONAL STATUSHOME SCIENCEMODULE - 2 NotesNutritional StatusFoods and Nutrition 92 recognise the signs and symptoms of common NUTRITIONAL deficiencydiseases; explain the importance of National nutrition programmes and list someof them; state salient features of these programmes.

3 NUTRITIONAL STATUSThe condition of health of a person that is influenced by the in-take and utilisation of nutrients is called NUTRITIONAL know that we need a nutritious diet for our well-being and good our body receives all the nutrients in appropriate amounts so as tomeet the needs of the body, then we are in the state of good nutrition. Wehave a normal NUTRITIONAL , when the nutrients provided in the diet are inadequate or notutilised properly, it results in a state of imbalance in the body. If this con-tinues for sometime it may develop into a severe problem which may evenprove fatal. Balanced food intake Normal NUTRITIONAL STATUS Normal utilisation of nutrientsWhen there is a lack or excess intake of one or more nutrients and/or faultyutilisation of nutrients in our body, it leads to the state of imbalance in thebody.

4 This condition is known as malnutrition. Imbalanced food intake Malnutrition Faulty utilisation of nutrientsThere are two types of malnutrition. The condition of health of a personthat results due to the lack of one or more nutrients is called undernutri-tion. However, when there is an excess intake of nutrients, it results SCIENCEMODULE - 2 Foods and NutritionNotes 93 NUTRITIONAL StatusThus the condition of malnutrition covers both the states of undernutritionand overnutrition. You must have seen people who eat energy rich foods inamounts more than what is required by their bodies become fat/obese. Thisis the result of overnutrition. This state of being obese is harmfulas it may lead to serious health problems. But undernutrition is morecommon around us.

5 In fact malnutrition has become a synonym of'undernutrition'.INTEXT QUESTIONS What is NUTRITIONAL STATUS ?2. Fill in the blanks in each of the following statements by choosing theappropriate word from those given in the brackets :(deficiency, overnutrition, obese, undernutrition, normal)(i)Malnutrition refers to both _____ and_____(ii)Undernutrition results due to _____ of one or more nutri-ents.(iii) If you eat too much of energy rich foods, you may become_____.(iv) Eating balanced food and having normal utilisation of nutrientsleads to _____nutritional STATUS . CAUSES OF MALNUTRITIONDo you know why malnutrition occurs? Let us look into some of the impor-tant factors responsible for causing Decreased availabilityLowered food intakeof food due toi.

6 Increase in population(many mouths to feed)ii. Low productioniii. Exhaustion of stocks2. IgnoranceWrong infant feeding practices, inabil-ity to make correct choice of foodresulting in over/undernutrition3. Economic conditionsLowered purchasing power causingundernutrition/higher purchasing powercausing overnutritionHOME SCIENCEMODULE - 2 NotesNutritional StatusFoods and Nutrition 944. Stress conditionsInability to meet the increased nutrientneeds during periods of rapid physicalgrowth, in young children, adolescents,pregnant woman and lactating mothers; Nutri-ent demands also increases during Poor personalIncreased susceptibility to infectionshygiene andand thereby illnessesenvironmentalsanitationCan you think of the consequences of malnutrition?Yes, indeed malnutrition has serious ill-effects.

7 The people affected by mal-nutrition suffer from deficiencies of different nutrients and have also have poor physical as well as mental growth and developmentwhich cause various handicaps. Malnutrition can also lead to also leads to decreased work capacity of malnourished QUESTIONS Enlist the most important causes of malnutrition (undernutrition)._____ _____ _____ _____ _____2. Malnutrition may even lead to _____ of many The consequences of malnutrition are _____,_____, _____ and _____. ASSESSMENT OF NUTRITIONAL STATUSNow you will wonder, as to how to know your own or your friends nutri-tional STATUS . The process of determing the NUTRITIONAL STATUS of an indi-vidual or a group is known as NUTRITIONAL are a few simple ways by which you can know the NUTRITIONAL STATUS ofyourself as well as of others.

8 These procedures are -1. By measuring physical growth;2. By determining dietary intake;3. By recognising NUTRITIONAL deficiency Physical GrowthYou know that growth is most rapid during early childhood. Therefore, chil-HOME SCIENCEMODULE - 2 Foods and NutritionNotes 95 NUTRITIONAL Statusdren below 5 years of age are most susceptible to malnutrition. Growth canbe determined by measuring the body weight and height. A child at a par-ticular age must have a specific height and weight. In other words, the bodyweight and height of the child can become the indicator of his/her do you know whether a child has normal weight and height? There arestandard weights and heights which the child is expected to attain at a par-ticular age. These are called references and are shown in Tables In casethe weight and/or height of the child are below the reference, then the growthis considered to be retarded and we can say that the child is suffering HEIGHT AND WEIGHT FOR AGE BOYS GIRLSH eightWeightHeightWeight(cm)(kg)(cm)(kg) SCIENCEMODULE - 2 NotesNutritional StatusFoods and Nutrition example, Sita is 4 years old.

9 Her weight is 12 kg and her height is 99 at Table and comment on her NUTRITIONAL STATUS . Compare her weightand height with the reference of a 4 year old girl. Ideally, she should weight16 kg and should be cm tall at her age. In other words not only doesSita weigh less she is also short for her age. This means that her nutritionalstatus is poor and she may be considered as the other hand, if a child has height and weight (specially) more than thereferences, he/she is said to be overnourished. This is also harmful for : Take weights and heights of 5 children around them with the reference tables. What do you observe? (cm)Weight (kg)Observation(Overnourished/undernouri shed) should remember that recording regular weights, say once a month, isimportant. Excessive weight gain or loss is harmful and should be immedi-ately attended SCIENCEMODULE - 2 Foods and NutritionNotes 97 NUTRITIONAL Status2.

10 Dietary IntakeIt is the second method of assessment. You will remember that balanced dietis essential for all of us to remain assess the NUTRITIONAL STATUS one needs to record all the food items con-sumed in the last 24 hours. Household measures are used for recording thefood information can then be compared with the food pyramid' given inFigures and These figures are applicable for adult man and number of portions (servings) can be adapted for various physiologicalgroups. By comparsion, one can know whether a person is consuming anormal/ recommended diet or amount of intake indicates clearly whether a person has normal nutri-tional STATUS or not. Let us know the method of determing your nutritionalstatus -(i)Note down whatever food items are eaten on one particular day alongwith the amounts of raw food items, in grams.