Nutritionally Speaking: Are People Well Fed?

Dear Dr. Meinig: What are some of the more common signs of nutritional deficiency? I think people eat pretty well in this country, so I have trouble seeing that there is any widespread existence of deficiencies in the people I know and meet. – A.D.

 

Dear A.D.: Our people eat well enough so that a total deficiency of any one nutrient is rare. What does exist is partial deficiencies and these cause subclinical conditions that are not readily visualized. It takes only 10 to 15 mg. of vitamin C to prevent scurvy, but how much is needed to control all the other responsibilities vitamin C has to our health and well-being? This question is being argued strenuously in scientific circles.

It is quite common for people and health professionals to assume that if a person is not sick–he is healthy. Absence of illness is not a criteria of health.

In order to check whether feelings such as yours are soundly based, the Cornell University Medical College prepared a health questionnaire. It contains 195 questions that reveal the health status of the various body systems. One section of questions pertains to eyes and ears, another to the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, teeth, stomach, liver, gall bladder and intestines, skeleton and muscle systems, skin, nervous system, and the genital, urinary systems. The questionnaire is designed so that a person having a problem in any one of the various areas of health, would check the yes box. If his answer was no, it is presumed no health problem exists.

One or more yes answers in any one category would tip off the examining doctor that an abnormal pathology condition was present and should be investigated. If the patient claimed to be in good health and not suffering any obvious deficiency, at most the total yes answers he might be expected to report would be half a dozen out of the 195 questions. Thousands of these Cornell Medical Index forms have been filled out by individuals and by members of organizations. The total number of yes answers proved to be startling in every group of people tested. 30 to 50% yes answers were much more common than 8 or 10.

It would seem that if people had so many deficiencies, their poor state of health ought to be more obvious. We have no trouble recognizing the severe arthritic, the recent heart attack victim, one who shakes from palsy or Parkinson’s disease, or the wheezing of an asthmatic. Not noticed, even in ourselves, are the subtle and common deficiencies that occur which we accept as normal. For example, the friend with frequent headaches appears o.k. because of aspirin or Tylenol. Another takes Tums throughout the day for his stomach distress, while still another is battling constipation or diarrhea. Trips to the dentist are considered normal, as are prescriptions for valium for anxiety and other nervous disorders.

If most people tested have so many problem areas, one would think the nutritional factors that are involved would be quite obvious. They really are not, because people follow such a great variety of diets. Because of the high amount of sweets, refined foods and toxic beverages, much of what is consumed today is deficient in many of the 50 known required nutrients essential to our health. We are dependent upon the groceries we eat to provide all these different food elements.

Should you feel this information not too convincing, let me tell you about another simple, but very conclusive, survey available to doctors interested in nutrition. This is a specially designed form used by patients to record, after each meal, everything they ate and drank, including the size of the portions. After listing all one eats for one week, this information is fed into a computer and the resulting figures of total calorie intake, the amount of protein, fats and carbohydrates, plus the amounts of vitamins and minerals appear on the print-out. Tabulated alongside this data is a list of the government’s daily recommended requirements. Further, the percentage of any deficiencies and excesses are listed so that it is easy to see how the patient’s diet compares to the recommended normals. Of the hundreds of these that I have seen and examined, there were fewer than a dozen that had dietary intakes that provided the nutrients recommended as necessary by the government’s minimum daily requirements.

Common health problems that many people experience are related to nutrition deficiencies. A frequent one is how quickly one’s eyes adapt to the darkness when they enter a theatre, or the ability of the eyes to quickly adjust to the glare from bright lights of oncoming cars. These are vitamin A deficiencies suffered by over 60% of our people.

Weakness of muscles and tenderness in bones can be a shortage of vitamin D. Cracks in the corner of the mouth and sore tongues are signs of riboflavin (vitamin B2), folic acid and other B vitamin deficiencies. Bleeding of gums everyone knows can be caused by too little vitamin C. Loss of taste results from shortage of zinc.

Sparse and thinning hair and fingernail problems usually indicate a need for protein. Cramps can be related to calcium and magnesium status. Mental derangements are often present with niacin is deficient.

Everyone of the 50 odd nutrients we require, if not supplied in the food we eat could be similarly listed, as each if deficient or in excess may result in an annoying adverse symptom. We know through the many scientific, computerized health and dietary questionnaires that have been conducted on large numbers of our population that we can no longer assume the average diet to be good. It is true that these studies confirm that most diets supply adequate numbers of calories and in many cases an overabundance of them. This means energy requirements are being supplied. Adequate calories and energy lends agreement to your statement that we are eating pretty well in this country. Unfortunately, the gross deficiencies that exist in the amounts of protein, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids and the abnormal health symptoms these surveys reveal it must be concluded that–our people are sadly undernourished.