What Is a Deficiency Disease?

Vitamins are a class of nutrients necessary to maintain the health of human and animal bodies. They are low-molecular organic compounds. Most of them cannot be synthesized in the body, or the amount synthesized is difficult to meet the needs of the body and must be provided by food. Such substances have the following common characteristics: they are present in natural foods; most of them cannot be synthesized in the body (except for a few vitamins such as vitamin D and K); they are not structural components of the body and do not provide energy, but are regulating substances Plays an important role in the metabolic process. The human body only needs a small amount of vitamins daily to meet its metabolic needs, but it must not be lacking, otherwise the deficiency will cause vitamin deficiency. Vitamins can be divided into two categories according to their solubility, namely fat-soluble vitamins and water-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K. They can be dissolved in fat and enter the body with fat; water-soluble vitamins include vitamin C and vitamin B family (B ₁ , B ₂ , B ₆ , B ₁₂ , Nicotinic acid, pantothenic acid, folic acid, biotin, etc.), they can be dissolved in water and enter the body with water. Due to the different solubility of the two types of vitamins, the absorption, excretion, and accumulation in the body are different, resulting in different speeds of deficiency symptoms. Symptoms of fat-soluble vitamin deficiency appear more slowly, while symptoms of water-soluble vitamin deficiency appear relatively quickly.

Basic Information

English name

vitamin deficiency, avitaminosis

Visiting department

Clinical Nutrition

Common causes

Insufficient supply in the diet, the body's ability to absorb and use vitamins is reduced, the physiological requirements of vitamins are relatively increased, and excretion is increased

Contagious

no

Causes of Vitamin Deficiency

There are many reasons for vitamin deficiency. The following are common:

1. Insufficient supply in the diet. It includes both the insufficient vitamin content of the food itself and the insufficient food intake. It may also be caused by improper food processing and cooking methods that cause vitamin damage and loss, resulting in insufficient dietary supply.

2. The human body's ability to absorb and use vitamins is reduced. These factors include excessive intake of dietary fiber and reduced vitamin absorption, as well as decreased gastrointestinal dysfunction leading to reduced vitamin absorption and utilization.

3. The physiological requirements of vitamins have increased relatively. In some special periods, such as pregnancy, lactating women, and children during growth and development, the demand for multivitamins increases. The human body also increases the demand for vitamins in cold, hot and other special environmental conditions or certain diseases.

4. Increased discharge. Vomiting, diarrhea, etc. may lead to increased excretion of multivitamins, especially water-soluble vitamins.

The above factors may cause vitamin deficiency. If the deficiency is severe, it may lead to vitamin deficiency.

Clinical manifestations of vitamin deficiency

There are currently more than a dozen essential vitamins known to the human body, which are divided into two categories, water-soluble vitamins and fat-soluble vitamins. Vitamin deficiency is often a gradual process in the body. At first, the reserve of the body decreases, and then there may be biochemical abnormalities related to its metabolism, changes in physiological functions, and then histopathological changes and corresponding clinical symptoms. Therefore, vitamin deficiencies are usually mild and often have no obvious clinical symptoms. Special symptoms of vitamin deficiencies occur only when they are severely deficient. Of course, clinically more common may be the symptoms of multivitamin deficiency.

Vitamin deficiency test

Generally, the vitamin status of the body is evaluated through dietary surveys, laboratory tests, and clinical symptoms and signs to determine whether vitamin deficiency is present. The first and very important is the diet survey, because the content of different vitamins in food is different, the amount of food that everyone ingests is different, and the digestion, absorption, and excretion levels of vitamins are also different. The second is a laboratory test. Most water-soluble vitamins can be evaluated by urine or blood, while fat-soluble vitamins cannot be evaluated by urine. The third is clinical signs and symptoms, as each vitamin deficiency may have relatively specific clinical manifestations.

In short, comprehensive analysis and judgment of vitamin deficiency through the above multiple means.

Vitamin deficiency diagnosis

Vitamin deficiency should be diagnosed based on a combination of dietary surveys, laboratory tests, and clinical manifestations.

Vitamin deficiency treatment

Mild vitamin deficiency is generally recommended to be supplemented with food, and foods rich in vitamins should be selected; for moderate vitamin deficiency, a corresponding amount of vitamin supplements may be added to the diet; severe vitamin deficiency may even require muscle Injection or intravenous infusion. In short, the treatment of vitamin deficiency must be individualized. Supplementation must take into account the issue of digestion, absorption and utilization of vitamins by the individual. At the same time, care must be taken to avoid oversupply, otherwise the effect may be counterproductive and may endanger physical health.