Nutrition and Mental FunctionsGeorge Serban The description of sequelae of nutritional deficien cies was equally oversimplified. Obviously, a disease like rickets, which affected hard tissues--the skeleton- had irreversible consequences. Destruction or alteration of tissues, such as in cancrum oris or severe xerophthal mia, was equally permanent and easily observed. Other models were beriberi or scurvy, where, by contrast, the vitamin treatment seemed to restore the individual to the completely normal status quo ante. Most nutritionists were therefore little prepared intellectually for the series of suggestive findings con cerning nutrition and mental development which has been the highlight of nutritional research in the past decade: the discovery that there are irreversible gaps in mental development not correlated with obvious permanent somatic lesions which follow acute malnutrition during the develop ment of the young infant. Furthermore, not only are ex isting somatic instruments--physical examination, the scale, and the measuring tape--inadequate to detect such intellectual and behavioral deficits, but some of the current psychological instruments, bound to traditions of Western culture, are often poorly adapted to measure fine differences in psychological development among poor populations. These initial discoveries have stimulated important methodological advances, ranging from better staining techniques for the study of fibers connecting brain neurons to better tests for the study of cognitive development. |
Contents
Welcoming Address | 1 |
Introduction | 9 |
Behavioral Deficiencies in ProteinDeprived Monkeys | 33 |
Copyright | |
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activity adrenochrome ascorbic acid behavior biochemical bipolar concepts birth weight brain cell division changes child clinical cohort Colony control group Cravioto deficiency dietary differences discrimination dopamine effects of malnutrition Electrolyte disturbance environment environmental epinephrine experimental factors families famine FIGURE function growth hebephrenia Hoffer home stimulation human hypothesis income indicate infants interaction kwashiorkor learning low-protein diet malnourished malnourished animals malnutrition marital status matched controls Mean measure megavitamin megavitamin therapy mental development metabolism months mothers myelin niacin nicotinic acid normal nourished animals number of cells nutritional observed organ Osmond patients pellagra Percent period phenothiazines postnatal predictor score prenatal present problem protein protein-calorie malnutrition psychiatric pups rate of cell rats reduced response rhesus monkey schizophrenia severe malnutrition severely malnourished children significant social Stewart synthesis TABLE task therapy tion treatment trials variables vitamin Vitamin B6 vitamin-responsive weaning Zimmermann