Kwashiorkor, a protein deficiency, which is rare in the industrial world, has been found and studied in African children and has shown clinical signs and symptoms. Protein malnutrition can result in hair changes that include hair thinning and hair loss.1” Children suffering from Kwashiorkor often have reddish hair, swelling in extremities and gastrointestinal distress.
Pellagra was a plague in the American south at the beginning of the 1900’s. “Pellagra, due to a deficiency of niacin, results in the well-known triad of photosensitive dermatitis, diarrhea, and dementia. Alopecia is another frequent clinical finding.1 ” The symptoms were known as the manifest of the “4 D’s.” Diet modifications were able to put a stop to this, causing a landmark event in medicine.
Scurvy, a deficiency known to happen to sailors especially, has clinical signs of such as swollen, loosen and bleeding gums, petechiae, ecchymoses, hyperkaratosis, corkscrew hairs. Gingival disease is common in children suffering from Scurvy, which may result in poor teeth formation. Children, who suffer from a more severe form of Scurvy, would need medical attention if there is bone involvement2.
Guo EL, Katta R. Diet and hair loss: effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use. Dermatology Practical & Conceptual. 2017;7(1):1-10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01.
Agarwal A, Shaharyar A, Kumar A, Bhat MS, Mishra M. Scurvy in pediatric age group – A disease often forgotten? Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Trauma. 2015;6(2):101-107. doi:10.1016/j.jcot.2014.12.003.