Vitamin E Deficiency Problems in Infants and Adults

By Gregory Grand

Vitamin E deficiency is a condition that leads to neurological problems; they will go noticed with the developments of neuromuscular problems like myopathies and spinocerebellar ataxia. In certain cases, poor levels of vitamin E will lead to anemia.

We have to say that well, it is pretty rare hat this deficiency happens in us humans, specially as it is not linked to malnutrition issues, instead the causes are others, let's take a look at them.

To start we have that people who have problems absorbing dietary fat are very prone to developing this type of deficiency, also children who at the moment of birth weighed very little will be more likely to develop a condition of this kind.

When an individual cannot properly absorb the necessary quantities of vitamin E, doctors will immediately treat this with supplementation. This fat is essential for this task.

Other group of people at risk, are those who are suffering from cystic fibrosis, problems such as Crohn's disease, pancreatic insufficiency and liver disease, as they may not absorb the dietary fat. Also included are patients who have had parts of their stomach removed.

In the case of children born with a low weight, it will be needed the help of a pediatrician called a neonatologist, who will evaluate for possible problems with the absorption of vitamin E, especially in premature children.

The condition that prevents greatly the absorption of dietary fat and vitamin E, is called abetalipoproteinemia, when this takes place, there will be some symptoms arising that are important to watch out, such as muscle weakness, poor transmission of nerve impulses and retina degeneration (this can lead to blindness).

Again, in this case, supplementation will be of great aid to treat the disorder and prevent the complications from arising. Another condition that prevents proper absorption is ataxia; individuals suffering from this rare condition will need high doses of vitamin E. - 30414

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