Pediatric Nutrition: First things first Posted on March 29, 2018 | by Functional Developer | Leave a Comment on Pediatric Nutrition: First things first With over 25% of the world’s children experiencing failure to thrive (FTT), stunted growth, and or delayed development, it is a good time to look at the various facets of pediatric nutrition that require particular attention (1). Recent assessments of pediatric malnutrition have indicated that the influence of one or more micronutrient deficiencies on the trajectory of a child’s health may be far greater than previously thought and that clinicians must consider a much larger number of nutritional factors than energy and protein intake (2). An over reliance on assessing nourishment by the use of typical anthropometric values, can provide a false sense of adequacy. While the classic model of FTT relies upon the use of height and weight growth charts and percentiles, there may be neurological or other developmental delays that are equally tied to malnutrition. Continue reading →
Patients with Mitochondrial Disorders Frequently Suffer Malnutrition Posted on July 3, 2017 | by Functional Developer | Leave a Comment on Patients with Mitochondrial Disorders Frequently Suffer Malnutrition Revised 8/6/2020 A Dutch study published in the Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, revealed that those populations with neurodegenerative diseases caused by mitochondrial dysfunction are most often malnourished in at least a few to multiple macro and micronutrients. Mitochondrial pathology is at the core of many health conditions, most of which are on significant rise globally. Mitochondria require quite possibly the greatest nutritional support of any organelle within our cellular physiology. When nutrients are missing from an individual’s diet and mitochondria are unsupported, they start to burn out. Eventually, after there is sufficient damage, entire neurons start to collapse metabolically. It is this collapse that generates symptoms and ultimately underlying health conditions. Continue reading →