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Why malnutrition can go unnoticed, and what that means for our health
Malnutrition can remain unnoticed for months or years, as a person may get enough calories while missing essential vitamins or minerals. By the time symptoms emerge, deficiencies such as low vitamin B12 can have caused lasting nerve damage, while other effects include bone and muscle problems, thyroid disruption and impaired brain development in babies.
The article distinguishes undernutrition, caused by prolonged insufficient food, from “hidden hunger”, which affects about 2 billion people worldwide; the FAO estimates 645 million experience chronic undernutrition. It cites estimates that malnutrition contributes to 50,000 deaths a year in Germany, where roughly a third of people had vitamin D deficiency and a third insufficient iodine intake. Poverty, diets heavy in low-nutrient processed foods and depression can increase deficiency risks; the supplied article text ends mid-sentence while discussing older people.
In short
- Nutrient deficiencies can cause serious harm before symptoms are noticed.
- About 2 billion people worldwide experience hidden hunger.
- Poverty and unbalanced diets can raise deficiency risks.
Explained simply
Malnutrition is not only a lack of food. It can also happen when someone eats enough but does not get the vitamins and minerals their body needs, a problem sometimes called hidden hunger.
The effects depend on which nutrients are missing and for how long. Some deficiencies can harm nerves, bones or muscles, and poor nutrition during pregnancy or infancy can affect a baby’s development.
Risk is shaped by access to varied food and by health and personal circumstances. Poverty, diets relying heavily on processed foods and depression can make it harder to get enough essential nutrients, so malnutrition can affect people who may not appear underweight.