Symptoms of malnutrition in children

For children, malnutrition is a very common disease. The symptoms of malnutrition in children are mainly divided into two types: emaciation and edema. Long-term malnutrition in children can also cause other complications. Therefore, if a child is found to be malnourished, timely treatment is required.
People's living conditions are getting better and better, and many parents think that malnutrition is a distant thing for their children. However, children have vigorous growth and development, and their demand for nutrition is great. If they are not fed properly or have gastrointestinal problems, it is easy to affect the child's absorption and digestion, causing malnutrition. So, what are the symptoms of malnutrition in children?

Children with malnutrition have developmental delay, short stature, dull skin and hair, pale mucous membranes, and no or even no weight gain. Clinically, malnourished patients are divided into the emaciation type and the edema type.
Emaciation type: loose skin, reduced subcutaneous fat, thinning and inelastic, dry and yellow hair, frequent bowel movements with small amounts of mucus. The child's intelligence and movements are slow to varying degrees, body temperature is lower than normal, pulse is slow, and blood pressure is low.
Edema type: mild cases only have subcutaneous edema, severe cases may have pitting edema of the genitals, upper limbs, abdomen and face (depression when pressed), a few children may have pleural effusion, and a few may also have skin purpura. Sudden weight gain is a reliable sign of edema in children with this type.
Due to long-term malnutrition, children may also develop various complications, such as rickets, various infections, diarrhea, otitis media, pyelonephritis, etc. Laboratory tests may reveal signs of anemia in children.
To treat malnutrition in babies, the most important thing is to adjust their diet. For children with mild or severe malnutrition, since their digestive ability is still good, they can be given easily digestible food and supplied with large amounts of vitamins.