Hungry Kids: A Lost Right

"Negara Kaya, Rakyatnya Kelaparan"

Sad to say, but it's true. Nothing, I mean nothing else, can break your heart more than to see children lack the nutrition they need so badly in their 'Golden years'. They look weak, eyes looking 'empty', skin basically comes off pretty easily, thinning hair, pot-bellied but the body is otherwise very skinny, and the face develops into the face of an elderly. I heard of the names of the malnutrition types and I've seen theses cases before.

But never this rampant.

I searched through the net and found that the two infamous malnutrition types are KAWHIORKOR (lack of protein) and MARASMUS (lack of carb).

According to (WIKIPEDIA), there are various explanations for the development of kwashiorkor, and the topic remains controversial. It is now accepted that protein deficiency, in combination with energy and micronutrient deficiency, is certainly important, but may not be the key factor. The condition is likely to be due to deficiency of one of several type one nutrients (e.g., iron, folic acid, iodine, selenium, vitamin C), particularly those involved with anti-oxidant protection. Important queer anti-oxidants in the body that are reduced in children with kwashiorkor include glutathione, albumin, vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Therefore, if a child with reduced type one nutrients or anti-oxidants is exposed to stress (e.g. an infection or toxin) he/she is more liable to develop kwashiorkor.

And the symptoms are really heartbreaking.

Kwashiorkor sufferers, i.e., inadequate dietary protein intake, show signs of thinning hair or “Flag Sign”, edema, inadequate growth, and weight loss. Note the angular stomatitis indicative of an accompanying Vitamin B deficiency as well.

What I didn't find is when these children are recovered (hopefully soon), could they be healthy and strong again? Would this malnutrition leave any 'mark' either in the way they think (the mind) and the body? Being the future leaders of the country, I think these children deserve better treatment: staying healthy which means stronger body and mind.