Malnutrition originated from deficiency or absence of any nutrient.
Nutritional status affects every aspect of a child’s health, including
normal growth and physical activity in a child.
Malnutrition is one of the most important underlying causes of
child mortality in developing countries particularly during the first five
years of life.
CAUSES OF MALNUTRITION
·
Poverty World conflicts
·
Lack of Education
·
Natural disaster
·
Poor access to health care
NB: Nearly one third of children in the development countries are
malnourished. Divers studies have demonstrated that malnutrition increase
the risk of infection and death.
The most frequent causes of death in children under 5yrs old are
acute diarrhoea and acute respiratory infection, diverse studies have shown the
malnutrition is associated to these deaths.
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
Established the external health epidemiology reference Group (CH ERG) to
estimate the proportion of death in children younger than 5yrs attributed to
pneumonia, diarrhoea it was discovered that 8,795 million deaths in children
younger than 5yrs worldwide in 2008.
In 2009, the WHO estimated that 27% of children in developing countries
under the age of 5 years are malnourished. approximately 178 million children
(32% of children in the developing world) suffer from chronic
malnutrition.
Malnutrition is usually measured as body mass index (BMI) which is given
as weight for height.
PROTEIN CALORIE MALNUTRITION (PCM)
PCM is defined by the measurement that falls below two (2) standard deviation
under the normal:
1). Weight for age (under weight)
2). Height for age (stunting)
3). Weight for height (wasting)
Underweight, stunting and wasting form PCM each represent different
histories of nutritional deficits. Occurring primarily in the first 2-3 years
of life, linear growth retardation (stunting) is frequently associated with
repeated exposure to adverse economic conditions, poor sanitation, and the
interactive effects of poor energy and nutrient intake and
infection.
PCM appears in 3 clinical forms:
1). Marasmus: Caused by chronic wasting condition
2). Kwashiokor: Change in hair and skin colour moderate, grow
retardation.
3). Marasmus kwashior: Caused by severe wasting.
RESPIRATORY INFECTION ASSOCIATED WITH
MALNUTRITION
(ARIS) acute respiratory infections are
the leading cause of high mortality and morbidity among children under 5 yrs of
age, which is also the most frequent cause of death in the world
RISK FACTORS FOR AQURING RESPIRATOR INFECTION
1). Poverty
2). Restricted family income
3). Low parental educational level
4). Lack of breast feeding, and most importantly
5). Malnutrition
NB: it can also be causes secondarily by increased in demand of
nutrients example of how respiratory infections can contribute to malnutrition
is chronic infection caused cachexia.
MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS (ALRI)
Studies have demonstrated that pneumonia is more common among children
with marasmic kwashiorkor than other types of malnourishment.
EFFECT OF RESPIRATORY INFECTION
It can cause a loss of critical body stores protein and energy. Pneumonia also occurs most frequently
during 24-26 month of life, when a child is being first exposed to pathogen.
TYPES OF PNEUMONIA
1). Streptococcus pneumoniae: Are caused by bacterial
infection.
2). Haemophilis influenza are the most important pathogen associated with
childhood pneumonia and are caused by bacterial infection. While Staphyloccous
aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae have also been linked to cause
pneumoniea were the two microorganism isolated most frequency from blood, lung
or pleural fluid from well nourished and malnourished children with
penumonia.
CONCLUSION
We focused on describing the interactions between malnutrition and
immune system
dysfunction and the determinants that provoke increase in susceptibility
respiratory infection.