Protein Deficiency: Signs, Symptoms & Effect

Protein Deficiency: Signs, Symptoms & Effect and How to detect Protein Deficiency

 

Protein is a vital part of everyday diet. Body requires adequate quantity of it to repair damaged cells, build muscle and tissues, produce hormones and neurotransmitters, and assist in many other bodily functions.

Every person should take a minimum of 1gm / kg of body weight amount of it. Protein Deficiency can lead to several complications with signs and symptoms differing with children and adults. But none the less the effect of protein deficiency in people of all age and sex can be a serious issue.

The problem of protein deficiency is more common among athletes and body-builders. Their body undergoes intense workout and so a lot of internal injuries take place and to repair them protein is needed. Protein deficiency in their case can lead to muscle wasting, no bodily improvement, smaller limbs and lean muscles, and stunted growth.

As for general people they can suffer from weakness, stunted growth, muscle atrophy, swelling of the feet, alteration or loss of hair, skin changes, diarrhea, and anemia. This are symptoms that are normally used to diagnosis protein deficiency but apart from these others symptoms may appear due to sub-clinical deficiency, where the individual is not getting adequate protein but the amount is not too low to manifest any severe symptoms.

In case of sub-clinical deficiency, a person can show slowing metabolism, and difficulty losing weight, difficulty in increasing muscle mass, reduced energy and fatigue, poor concentration etc. symptoms and this can lead to insidious problems conjugated with other mishaps.

Why Protein is needed –

 

·         Dietary proteins provide the body with calories or energy. Each gram of protein provides 4 calories.

·         The body's cells are made up of proteins. These are needed for normal cell growth and development during childhood, adolescence and pregnancy.

·         Proteins help build and repair the cells and tissues of the body in both children and adults

·         The skin, hair, nails, bones, and internal organs are largely composed of proteins. 

·         Protein is found in almost all body fluids.

·         Proteins play an important role in several physiological processes such as coagulation, fluid balance, immune response, vision, hormone and enzyme production, and cognition.

 

How Much Protein Should You Take Daily –

 

According to Health Canada, the minimum amount of protein that should be consumed daily is 0.8 grams per kilogram of weight for an adult. However, new studies suggest that the level should be much higher, 1.2 grams per kilogram of weight. These protein levels are obviously for a relatively sedentary adult. Those who are more physically active and/or who want to increase their muscle mass should consume much more.

 

Cause of Protein Deficiency –

 

Lack of protein is caused due to four main reasons in an individual. They are –

·         Lack of Protein in diet.

·         Poor digestion system.

·         Difficulty in Protein absorption.

·         And, increase usage or loss of Protein from the body (mainly seen is body-builder, athletes, and old people).

Signs and Symptoms of Protein Deficiency –

 

Multiple symptoms can manifest due to protein deficiency that you can use to detect a lack of protein in diet. And these symptoms are divided into clinical and sub-clinical. When the amount of protein is very low clinical symptoms are seen but when it is low but not too low sub-clinical symptoms are seen. Here are some of the signs and symptoms –

1.      Swelling of Face and Feet (Edema) –

Protein is needed to maintain osmotic pressure inside the body lack of which can lead to disruption of balance which in turn leads to fluid accumulation in the periphery of the body.

2.      Liver Disorder –

The liver performs hundreds of tasks every day starting from detoxifying the body to breaking down waste and food material. And to do all this liver needs protein, lots of protein. Mainly to repair the cells that are damaged in the process and to produce required chemicals. Lack of protein can lead to fat accumulation in the liver which can later if remain untreated cause fatty liver disease.

3.      Weakness –

Protein helps synthesize ATP which is the basic form of energy in our body and often called energy currency. Our body uses ATP to fuel everything. Although there are other ways to fuel us but our body prefers to use ATP above all. And lack of protein can lead to reduced ATP production and muscle wasting which can lead to general weakness.

4.      Weight Loss and Muscle Wasting –

During deficiency, our body uses itself as a source of protein, especially muscles. To meet the requirement our body breaks down muscle tissue and utilizes them to produce protein. This leads to muscle wasting and a drop in muscle mass, which in turn reduces the bodyweight of the individual. This event is more common in elderly people who don’t eat enough protein-rich food.

But sometimes the opposite can also happen and lead to an increase in weight or difficulties to reduce weight. It is more common with other symptoms like edema, hair and skin problems, etc. and mainly found in Kwashiorkor patients.

5.      Reduced Growth –

Protein is an essential component for body growth, especially in children. It is needed to perform cell division and increase cellular mass and lead to growth. But lack of protein in the diet can lead to shut down of this process. And this causes stunted growth.

6.      Poor Immunity –

To fight off disease our body produces antibodies. And this anti-body is predominately made from protein molecules. Lack of protein in the diet can lead to a decrease in the number of anti-bodies, which makes the body more susceptible to infections and disease. Such a body also needs an increased time to recover from a disease.

7.      Extended Wound Healing –

Healing of a wound is basically body making a new copy of the cells that were injured or destroyed. And for this body needs protein. If the body gets a poor amount of protein from the diet, it will take a longer period of time to heal the wound as the proper amount of protein cannot be supplied to the affected area.

8.      Skin, Hair, and Nail Problems –

Severe protein deficiency can manifest itself through skin, hair, and nail. For example, a child suffering from Kwashiorkor can show splitting of skin, redness, and patches of depigmented skin.

For hair, Alopecia is seen as most common which is thinning of hair followed by hair loss. And for nail, they become weak and brittle due to lack of protein and often a white streak and deep ridges in the nail which doesn’t disappear even if pressed indicates preliminary protein deficiency.

9.      Increased Appetite –

Our body is very intelligent and it knows how to solve many problems itself although the process is crude and not very effective. To prevent prolonged protein deficiency our body increases our hunger and desire for savory food which are rich in protein and calories. By doing this it tries to restore the lack of protein. But often leads to a huge increase in weight.

10.  Others –

a.       Poor concentration.

b.       Learning difficulties.

c.       Mood changes.

d.       Muscle, bone, and joint pain.

e.       Hypoglycemia, followed by hyperglycemia (type II diabetes).

f.        Muscle atrophy.

g.       Diarrhea.

h.       Anemia.

i.         Low Blood Pressure and Low Heart Rate.

j.         Malabsorption.

k.       And, Increased Risk of Bone Fracture.

 

Excess Protein Intake –

 

Overconsumption, as well as protein deficiency, is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis. Overconsumption of proteins can affect the body in two ways: it can disrupt the acid-base balance of the body and it can place a significant load on the kidneys.

Although we don’t usually take enough protein but it is always good to stay on the safe side. And for that, we should make sure that we are eating a good portion of vegetables with our protein.

It is recommended that about 25% of lunch and dinner meals should consist of protein-rich foods and at least 50-60% consist of vegetables. It is also advised to eat fruits in the morning along with a protein. Here, as elsewhere, dietary health is a matter of balance.

 

Reference –

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