The pathology of a nutrition condition or disorder disease. For this assignment, you will write a short research paper (2-3 pages) on a nutrition condition/disorder of your own choice.
You can choose any condition/disorder that is directly related to a nutritional imbalance (ex. diabetes, hypertension, CVD, etc.). In your paper, you should address the pathology of the disease (causes and effects), focusing particularly on the relationship between nutrition and the disorder.
Nutritional deficiencies can often worsen health outcomes (whether a disorder is present or not), and some disorders (eg, malabsorption) can cause nutritional deficiencies. Also, many patients (eg, older patients during acute hospitalization) have unsuspected nutritional deficiencies that require treatment. Many medical centers have multidisciplinary nutrition support teams of physicians, nurses, dietitians, and pharmacists to help the clinician prevent, diagnose, and treat occult nutritional deficiencies.
Overnutrition may contribute to chronic disorders, such as cancer, hypertension, obesity, diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease. Dietary restrictions are necessary in many hereditary metabolic disorders (eg, galactosemia, phenylketonuria).
Indications for nutritional evaluation include the following:
Undesirable body weight or body composition
Suspicion of specific deficiencies or toxicities of essential nutrients
In infants and children, insufficient growth or development
Nutritional status should be evaluated routinely as part of the clinical examination for
Infants and children
Older people
People taking several drugs
People with psychiatric disorders
People with systemic disorders that last longer than several days
Evaluating general nutritional status includes history, physical examination, and sometimes tests. If undernutrition is suspected, laboratory tests (eg, albumin levels) and skin tests for delayed hypersensitivity may be done. Body composition analysis (eg, skinfold measurements, bioelectrical impedance analysis) is used to estimate percentage of body fat and to evaluate obesity.