Nutrition, Parasites and Toxins

 Provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary (in the form of food) to support life  Intake of nutrients by an organism  A poor diet can have an injurious impact on health, causing deficiency diseases such as scurvy, beriberi, and health-threatening conditions like obesity and such common chronic systemic diseases as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and osteoporosis

ModerateVigorous  Walking briskly (about 3 ½ miles per hour)  Hiking  Gardening/yard work  Dancing  Golf (walking and carrying clubs)  Bicycling (less than 10 miles per hour)  Weight training (general light workout)  Running/jogging (5 miles per hour)  Bicycling (more than 10 miles per hour)  Swimming (freestyle laps)  Aerobics  Walking very fast (4 ½ miles per hour)  Heavy yard work, such as chopping wood  Weight lifting (vigorous effort)  Basketball (competitive)

MalnutritionObesity  Caused by an improper or inadequate diet and nutrition  Effects:  Death  Stunted growth  Slow mental development  Loss of menstrual cycle  A medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy  Effects:  Heart disease  Diabetes  Breathing difficulties  Cancer

 Scurvy  A disease resulting from a deficiency of Vitamin C  Leads to the formation of spots on the skin, spongy gums, and bleeding from the mucus membranes  Beriberi  Nervous system ailment caused by a deficiency of thiamin (vitamin B1) in the diet  Symptoms of beriberi include severe lethargy and fatigue, together with complications affecting the cardiovascular, nervous, muscular, and gastrointestinal systems

 Parasitic Protist  Infection by these organisms is known as Malaria  Over 200 known species, at least 10 infect humans  Has two hosts: mosquito vector and vertebrate host

 Cells in mouth called sporozoites are in mosquito’s mouth  They are injected into blood and infest liver  The sporozoites use the hepatocytes (liver cells) to grow and multiply into merozoites  The merozoites then burst out of the liver and spread through the blood stream digesting hemoglobin on RBCs

SymptomsTreatments  Anemia  Chills  Come  Convulsions  Fever  Headache  Jaundice  Muscle pain  Nausea  Blood stool  Sweating  Vomiting  Hospitalization  Meds include:  Chloroquine  Quinidine  Tetracycline  Proguanil (Malarone)  The combination of pyrimethamine and sulfadoxine, are given for chloroquine-resistant infections.  IV fluids and breathing support

 A poison is a substance that causes illness or harm if someone eats, drinks, touches or breathes it in  Every year more than 2.5 million people are exposed  Youth (under 19): 66% of exposures  Adults (over 19): 34% of exposures  Adults in the U.S. need a poison center every 39 seconds.

LeadMercury  “Lead Poisoning remains the most common and societal devastating environmental disease of young children. ” ( Public Health Service - L. Sullivan, 1991)

Lead Paint Dust, Soil Water Industry Hobbies Traditional Ethnic Remedies

 WOMEN lead crosses the placenta low infant birth weight retarded mental development miscarriages premature birth stillbirth  MEN decreased sex drive impotence sterility altered sperm- birth defects

Increased risk of not graduating from high school Poorer reading scores Increased evidence of depression Higher rate of hard drug use Increased risk for attention deficit disorder Increased risk for antisocial behavior  LOW GRADES  ABSENTEEISM  READING DISABILITY  HIGH SCHOOL DROP OUT

Quicksilver 13.6 times the weight of water Evaporates at room temperature Many Industrial uses (thermometers, chemical reactions, gold mining)  50-75% mercury of released in the environment related to human activities Natural Degassing of the earth Combustion of fossil fuel Industrial Discharges and Wastes Incineration & Crematories Dental amalgams

Blindness - Deafness Cerebral Palsy - Seizures Abnormal reflexes & muscle tone Retarded motor development Visual and Auditory Deficits Delayed motor development Decrease in Brain Size Cell loss Disorganization of cells Cell migration failures

 Malaria  m#Symptoms  Poison info:  poisonhelp.hrsa.gov/   Mercury  This presentation is supplement to “A Small Dose of Toxicology”  Lead:  This presentation is supplement to “A Small Dose of Lead”