A nutritional deficiency occurs when the body doesn’t absorb the necessary amount of a nutrient. Deficiencies can lead to a variety of health problems.

What are Nutritional Deficiencies?

The body requires many different vitamins and minerals that are crucial for both development and preventing disease. These vitamins and minerals are often referred to as micro-nutrients. They aren’t produced naturally in the body, so you have to get them from your diet. A nutritional deficiency occurs when the body doesn’t absorb the necessary amount of a nutrient. Deficiencies can lead to a variety of health problems. These can include problems of digestion, skin problems, stunted or defective bone growth, and even dementia.

The amount of each nutrient you should consume depends on your age. But sometimes your body is unable to absorb certain nutrients even if you are consuming them.

Types of Nutritional Deficiency:

It’s possible to be deficient in any of the nutrients that your body needs. Some common types of nutritional deficiencies include:

Vitamin A Deficiency

Vitamin A is a group of nutrients that is crucial for eye health and functioning and reproductive health in men and women. It also plays a part in strengthening the immune system against infections. According to the WHO, a lack of vitamin A is the leading cause of preventable blindness in children. Pregnant women who are deficient in vitamin A have higher maternal mortality rates as well. For newborn babies, the best source of vitamin A is breast milk. For everyone else, it’s important to eat plenty of foods that are high in vitamin A. These include:

• Milk
• Eggs
• Green vegetables, such as kale, broccoli, and spinach
• Orange vegetables like carrots, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin
• Reddish yellow fruits, like apricots, papaya, and peaches

Vitamin B-1 (Thiamine) Deficiency

Another common nutritional deficiency occurs with vitamin B-1, also known as thiamine. Thiamine is an important part of your nervous system. It also helps your body turn carbohydrates into energy as part of your metabolism. A lack of thiamine can result in weight loss and fatigue, as well as some cognitive symptoms such as confusion and short-term memory loss. Thiamine deficiency can also lead to nerve and muscle damage and can affect the heart.

Thiamine deficiency can most often be seen in those who chronically abuse alcohol. Alcohol reduces the absorption of thiamine, the body’s ability to store thiamine in the liver and the body’s ability to convert thiamine to a usable form. Thiamine deficiency is a common cause of Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome.

Vitamin B-3 (Niacin) Deficiency

Vitamin B-3 (niacin) is another mineral that helps the body convert food into energy. A severe deficiency of niacin is often referred to as pellagra. Niacin is found in most proteins. As a result, this condition is rare in meat eating communities.

Symptoms of pellagra include diarrhoea, dementia, and skin problems. You can usually treat it with a balanced diet and vitamin B-3 supplements.

Vitamin B-9 (Folate) Deficiency

Vitamin B-9, often referred to as folate (folic acid is the synthetic form found in supplements or fortified foods), helps the body create red blood cells and produce DNA. It also helps brain development and nervous system functioning.

Folate is especially important for foetal development. It plays a crucial role in the formation of a developing child’s brain and spinal cord. Folate deficiency can lead to severe birth defects, growth problems, or anemia.

You can find folate in a lot of foods, including:

• Beans and lentils
• Citrus fruits
• Leafy green vegetables
• Asparagus
• Meats such as poultry and pork
• Shellfish
• Fortified grain products

Pregnant women and women of childbearing age sometimes don’t consume enough folate for a healthy pregnancy. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommend that women who are pregnant or who may become pregnant consume up to 400 mg of folate or folic acid each day to help prevent birth defects.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Vitamin B12 (also called cobalamin) is naturally found in many animal products, including fish, meat, poultry, eggs and dairy items; it is generally not found in plant foods. Fortunately for vegans, fortified breakfast cereals and some nutritional yeast products also contain vitamin B12. The vitamin is required for proper red blood cell formation, neurological function and DNA synthesis. Deficiency of this important vitamin is common, affecting up to 15 percent of the general population.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency include megaloblastic anemia, fatigue, weakness, constipation, loss of appetite and weight loss. Neurological problems like numbness and tingling in the hands and feet can also occur. Other symptoms include difficulty maintaining balance, depression, confusion, dementia, poor memory and soreness of the mouth or tongue. Vitamin B12 has also been linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

Vitamin C Deficiency

Citrus fruits, tomatoes, tomato juice and potatoes are major sources of vitamin C. Other good contributors include red and green peppers, kiwi, broccoli, strawberries and Brussels sprouts. Vitamin C is not naturally found in grains, but it is added to some fortified breakfast cereals. The body uses vitamin C for the biosynthesis of collagen, L-carnitine and certain neurotransmitters, and it is also involved in protein metabolism.

In addition to its biosynthetic and antioxidant functions, vitamin C plays an important role in immune function and improves the absorption of nonheme iron. Vitamin C deficiency causes scurvy, the symptoms of which include fatigue, malaise, inflammation of the gums, loosening or loss of teeth, joint pain, and poor wound healing. Although scurvy is no longer the scourge it once was, narrowly chosen diets and bulimia among teens has created a scurvy resurgence. It can also afflict alcoholics or older people whose ability to absorb vitamin C has diminished from excessive medications or poor eating habits.

Vitamin D Deficiency

According to the Vitamin D Council, about 40 percent of the population worldwide is affected by vitamin D deficiency. Dark skinned individuals are at a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency.

Vitamin D is essential for healthy bones. It helps the body maintain the right levels of calcium in order to regulate the development of teeth and bones. A lack of this nutrient can lead to stunted or defective bone growth. Osteoporosis, caused by a lack of calcium and vitamin D, can lead to porous and fragile bones that break very easily.

Vitamin D is found naturally in only a few foods. Foods with vitamin D include:

• fish liver oils
• fatty fish
• mushrooms
• egg yolks
• liver

Many dairy products are fortified with vitamin D. Ultraviolet light from the sun is also a source of vitamin D. Research suggests that 5 to 30 minutes of sun exposure twice a week on the face, arms, neck, or back can provide you with enough vitamin D. (Although recommended for UV protection, sunscreen does hinder vitamin D absorption from sunlight through the skin, so spend a few minutes in the sun prior to sunscreen for optimal vitamin D absorption).

Calcium Deficiency

Calcium helps your body develop strong bones and teeth. It also helps your heart, nerves, and muscles work they way they should. A calcium deficiency often doesn’t show symptoms right away, but it can lead to serious health problems over time. If you aren’t consuming enough calcium, your body will use the calcium from your bones instead, leading to bone loss.

Calcium deficiencies are related to low bone mass, weakening of bones due to osteoporosis, convulsions, and abnormal heart rhythms. They can even be life-threatening. Postmenopausal women experience greater bone loss due to changing hormones and have more trouble absorbing calcium. The best sources of calcium are dairy products such as milk, yogurt, cheese, calcium-set tofu, and small fish with bones. Vegetables like kale and broccoli also have calcium, and many cereals and grains are calcium-fortified.

Iron Deficiency

The most widespread nutritional deficiency worldwide is iron deficiency. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, a blood disorder that causes fatigue, weakness, and a variety of other symptoms. Iron is found in foods such as dark leafy greens, red meat, and egg yolks. It helps your body make red blood cells.

When you’re iron deficient, your body produces fewer red blood cells. The red blood cells it produces are smaller and paler than healthy blood cells. They’re also less efficient at delivering oxygen to your tissues and organs.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), over 30 percent of the world’s population suffers from this condition. In fact, it’s the only nutritional deficiency that is prevalent in both developing and industrialized countries. Iron-deficiency anemia affects so many people that it’s now widely recognized as a public health epidemic.

Iodine Deficiency

Iodine is a mineral found in ocean fish, seaweed, shrimp, and other seafood, as well as dairy products and products made from grains. Produce also contains iodine, although levels in fruits and vegetables depend on the soil they were grown in. Iodine is used by the body to produce thyroid hormones that work to control other essential functions. Thyroid hormones are also required for proper bone and brain development during pregnancy and infancy.

Iodine deficiency during foetal and early-childhood development is a leading cause of brain impairments in much of the world. In adults, mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency can cause goiter, as well as impaired mental function and work productivity. Chronic iodine deficiency may be associated with an increased risk of some forms of thyroid cancer.

Magnesium Deficiency

Magnesium is found in legumes, nuts, whole grains and vegetables. Magnesium helps the body regulate more than 325 enzymes and plays an important role in organising many bodily functions like muscle control, electrical impulses, energy production and the elimination of harmful toxins. Early signs of magnesium deficiency include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and weakness. As magnesium deficiency worsens, numbness, tingling, muscle contractions and cramps, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms and coronary spasms can occur. One prominent study revealed that a magnesium-rich diet may lower stroke risk.

Zinc Deficiency

Zinc is abundant in oysters, red meat, poultry and fortified breakfast cereals. Beans, nuts, whole grains and dairy products also provide some zinc, but beans and grains have compounds that keep zinc from being fully absorbed by the body. Because of this, vegetarians may need to eat twice as much zinc than what is recommended.

Zinc is important for helping the immune system battle bacteria and viruses. It also helps in the production of cells and during pregnancy and infancy; in childhood, zinc helps the body to develop correctly. Zinc helps wounds heal properly and plays a role in taste and smell.

Symptoms of zinc deficiency include slow growth in infants and children, delayed sexual development in adolescents and impotence in men. Too little zinc can also be to blame for hair loss, diarrhoea, eye and skin sores, loss of appetite, problems with wound healing, decreased ability to taste food, and lower alertness levels.

What Are the Symptoms of Nutritional Deficiencies?

The symptoms of a nutritional deficiency depends on which nutrient the body lacks. However, there are some general symptoms you might experience, including:

• pallor (pale skin)
• fatigue
• weakness
• trouble breathing
• unusual food cravings
• hair loss
• periods of light-headedness
• constipation
• sleepiness
• heart palpitations
• feeling faint or fainting
• depression
• tingling and numbness of the joints
• menstrual issues (such as missed periods or very heavy cycles)
• poor concentration

You may display all of these symptoms or only groups of them. Over time, most people adapt to the symptoms. This can cause the condition to go undiagnosed. Schedule a checkup with your doctor if you experience prolonged periods of fatigue, weakness, or poor concentration. These symptoms could be a sign of the beginning of a serious deficiency.