What is Zinc Deficiency? What Are the Symptoms of Zinc Deficiency? What Causes Zinc Deficiency? Who Gets Zinc Deficiency? How Is Zinc Deficiency Diagnosed? How is Zinc Deficiency Treated? How to Prevent Zinc Deficiency? What Diseases Can Zinc Deficiency Cause? What is the Relationship Between Zinc Deficiency and Immune System? Frequently Asked Questions About Zinc Deficiency What is Zinc Deficiency?

Zinc; It is a mineral that cannot be produced in the body, must be taken in the form of external supplements, and in its deficiency, it manifests itself with different symptoms, from hair loss to chronic fatigue. In order to avoid these problems, an adult should take 10-12 mg of zinc supplements daily. Regular consumption of red meat, nuts and oats helps to eliminate the symptoms of zinc deficiency.

Contents
What is Zinc Deficiency?
What Are the Symptoms of Zinc Deficiency?
What Causes Zinc Deficiency?
Who Gets Zinc Deficiency?
How Is Zinc Deficiency Diagnosed?
How is Zinc Deficiency Treated?
How to Prevent Zinc Deficiency?
What Diseases Can Zinc Deficiency Cause?
What is the Relationship Between Zinc Deficiency and Immune System?
Frequently Asked Questions About Zinc Deficiency
What is Zinc Deficiency?

Zinc deficiency is when the body does not have enough of the mineral zinc, which it uses to fight infections and produce cells. Zinc is very important for the immune system, wound healing and growth and development during pregnancy, childhood and adolescence. Most of the time, zinc deficiency is not thought to be the source of problems such as fatigue, weakness, sleep problems, but one of the minerals needed for the body to function properly and maintain immunity is zinc found in the bones, brain, and red blood cells. If the symptoms of zinc deficiency are seen as a result of the tests, it should be tried to eliminate the zinc deficiency with external supplementation.

What Are the Symptoms of Zinc Deficiency?
The symptoms of zinc deficiency, which results in the body's inability to produce healthy new cells, include loss of appetite, slow growth and weakening of the immune system, are as follows:

Skin changes that look like eczema in zinc deficiency
unexplained weight loss
Anorexia
delayed healing of wounds
Hair loss
Weakened sense of smell and taste
Diarrhea
vision problems
More frequent infections
sexual dysfunction
Hair loss
mood swings, such as feeling irritable
Symptoms such as lack of concentration appear.
Zinc deficiency symptoms can be seen in children and adults in different ways. While these substances express zinc deficiency in adults, growth retardation in children is seen as slowing and stopping of development.

Zinc Deficiency Symptoms in Babies
In infants and children aged 0-5, zinc deficiency symptoms should be well observed and supplemented with supplements in cases where they are deficient. Diarrhea problems that do not go away, especially in babies up to 2 years old, are the first among the symptoms of zinc deficiency in babies. Problems such as deterioration in the skin in the following periods, lack of progress according to the month of development, delayed healing of open wounds occur as a result of zinc deficiency. In addition, recurrent infections are also among the symptoms of zinc deficiency. In this case, as a result of the doctor's supervision, 2 mg of zinc supplementation can be given to infants 0-6 months, 3 mg to infants 7-12 months, 4 mg to 1-3 years old, and 5 mg to 4-8 years old.

What Causes Zinc Deficiency?
When animal products, seafood, grains and vegetables-fruits are not consumed adequately in meals, the body cannot store the zinc it needs from outside. The causes of zinc deficiency, especially in people with dietary habits that they prefer not to consume the most zinc-rich food groups, are as follows:

Unbalanced and malnutrition such as a vegan diet
Babies who are only breastfed for more than 6 months
Intestinal issues such as poor absorption problems
excessive alcohol use
celiac
Crohn's disease
Diabetes
pancreas, liver and chronic ailments such as ulcerative colitis come.
Who Gets Zinc Deficiency?
The reduction of zinc in the body is used more widely in some cases. These can be listed as follows:

Excessive alcohol consumption
Those who have absorption problems,
Pregnancy period,
It is often seen in these people in situations such as breastfeeding. In addition, people with celiac disease and people with a genetic predisposition to liver disorders may also experience zinc deficiency symptoms.
How Is Zinc Deficiency Diagnosed?
If there are problems that will affect the quality of life and zinc deficiency symptoms have started to appear in the body, medical control should be sought. Doctors first determine whether there is a problem on the skin, hair and nails. Afterwards, when required by the physician, a conclusion is reached by evaluating the symptoms of zinc deficiency in the laboratory environment by referring to blood and hair samples.

How is Zinc Deficiency Treated?
After the diagnosis of zinc deficiency, the diet is regulated in the long term, different for adults and individuals. Milk, cheese, yogurt, lentils, chickpeas, quinoa, mushrooms, asparagus, chickpeas and sea creatures rich in zinc should be integrated into the diet.

r. Especially since animal foods are quickly absorbed by the body, it is important to include them in nutritional meals in the evening, lunch and dinner. Apart from this, the symptoms of zinc deficiency that do not improve with the diet are regularly treated with supplements.

How to Prevent Zinc Deficiency?
If there are signs of zinc deficiency in the body, it means that the zinc reserves in the body have decreased. It is necessary to establish a regular and healthy diet routine after the doctor's indication of zinc deficiency, which adversely affects the quality of life. For this, eggs and some cheese should be consumed on the breakfast plate every morning. Bread made from healthy grains can be preferred as an alternative to wheat bread. Consumption of red and white meat at dinner 3-4 days a week is also important to prevent zinc deficiency.

What Diseases Can Zinc Deficiency Cause?
When the daily required amount of zinc is not adequately met, various diseases may occur in the human body. These;

Paralysis,
Heart attack,
Leukemia,
Anemia,
It is in the form of infectious diseases.
What is the Relationship Between Zinc Deficiency and Immune System?
Zinc deficiency symptoms also manifest themselves on the immune system. The collapse of the immune system day by day, the loss of functionality of body functions are among the symptoms of zinc deficiency. Zinc has an important place among the minerals that support the immune system. therefore, zinc values should be at normal levels for a healthy immune system.

Frequently Asked Questions About Zinc Deficiency
What causes zinc deficiency in the body?
Zinc deficiency causes testosterone production in the body, especially in men. Apart from this, erection problem in men is among the symptoms of zinc deficiency. In addition, hair loss, deterioration in nails, eye diseases also occur as a result of low zinc.

What are the symptoms of zinc deficiency in adults?
Zinc deficiency symptoms in adults are also manifested by diseases such as anemia, diabetes and obesity.

What is zinc good for?
Zinc; It is very effective in cases such as healthy functioning of brain cells, rapid closure of wounds in the body, and elimination of acne and acne problems. Apart from this, a vigorous body, sleep quality, healthy hair and nails also show that zinc is good. Zinc deficiency causes deformities on the nails, and healthy zinc intake helps the nails grow stronger and faster.

Does zinc deficiency cause hair loss?
Hair loss can be seen as a sign of zinc deficiency. Crusting on the skin caused by zinc deficiency causes the hair roots to become weak and shed.

Prepared by Memorial Medical Editorial Board.