Zinc Malnutrition in Children and Its Consequences on Health

Abstract

Zinc is a mineral that is important to all forms of life due to its fundamental role in various metabolic process such as DNA replication, gene expression and protein synthesis. The function that zinc has in human health has been acknowledged by researchers for nearly half a century since the discovery of the syndrome of zinc deficiency among adolescents in Iran. This chapter looks at both elements of zinc malnutrition in children, that is, zinc deficiency and zinc toxicity, and its consequences on health. Severe forms of zinc deficiency are considered to be quite rare, while mild zinc deficiency is more commonly found, mainly within the developing world. Controlled research trails of supplemented zinc at areas that have intrinsically low levels of zinc intake have shown that low intake of zinc has an adverse influence on child health; particularly leading to deficits in neuropsychological functioning and motor development in children. On the other hand, zinc toxicity is rare in children as compared to adults. Zinc toxicity in children is due to oversupplement of zinc intake and can lead to the obesity and other issues such as high blood pressure and cholesterol. Furthermore, this chapter looks at possible precautions and measures to handle the issues associated with zinc malnutrition along with indicating additional research work essential in the field.