Share of children with a weight too low for their height wasting

In medicine, wasting, also known as wasting syndrome, refers to the process by which a debilitating

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

causes

muscle Muscle is a soft tissue, one of the four basic types of animal tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue in vertebrates: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. Muscle tissue gives skeletal muscles the ability to muscle contra ...

and fat tissue to "waste" away. Wasting is sometimes referred to as "acute malnutrition" because it is believed that episodes of wasting have a short duration, in contrast to stunting, which is regarded as chronic malnutrition. An estimated 45 million children under 5 years of age (or 6.7%) were wasted in 2021. Wasting prevalence declined from 7.5 % in 2012 to 6.8% in 2022, with 6.2% of children under five years old projected to be wasted in 2030, more than double the 3%

Sustainable Development Goals The ''2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development'', adopted by all United Nations (UN) members in 2015, created 17 world Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The aim of these global goals is "peace and prosperity for people and the planet" – wh ...

target. Prevalence is highest in Southern Asia, followed by

Oceania Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...

(excluding Australia and New Zealand) and South-eastern Asia.

Causes

Wasting can be caused by an extremely low energy intake (e.g., caused by famine), nutrient losses due to

infection An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...

, or a combination of low intake and high loss. Infections and conditions associated with wasting include

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

, chronic diarrhea, AIDS, and superior mesenteric artery syndrome. The mechanism may involve cachectin – also called tumor necrosis factor, a

macrophage Macrophages (; abbreviated MPhi, φ, MΦ or MP) are a type of white blood cell of the innate immune system that engulf and digest pathogens, such as cancer cells, microbes, cellular debris and foreign substances, which do not have proteins that ...

-secreted cytokine. Caretakers and health providers can sometimes contribute to wasting if the patient is placed on an improper diet. Voluntary weight loss and eating disorders are excluded as causes of wasting.

Diagnosis

Classification

* Children: Weight-for-height (WFH). In infants under 24 months, recumbent (supine) length is used. WFH as % of median reference value is calculated this way: :

\mathrm = \frac \times 100

Cutoff points may vary, but <80% (close to −2 Z-score) is often used. * Adults: **

Body Mass Index Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (Mass versus weight, weight) and height of a person. The BMI is defined as the human body weight, body mass divided by the square (algebra), square of the human height, body height, and is ...

(BMI) is the quotient between weight and height squared (kg/m²). An individual with a BMI < 18.5 is regarded as a case of wasting. ** Percent of body weight lost (At Tufts, an unintentional loss of 6% or more in 6 months is regarded as wasting)

Treatment

Antiretrovirals and anabolic steroids have been used to treat HIV wasting syndrome. Additionally, an increase in protein-rich foods such as peanut butter and legumes (dried beans and peas) can assist in controlling the loss of muscle mass.

Sources

References

External links

{{wiktionary, wasting
Chronic Wasting Disease and Potential Transmission to Humans, Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Symptoms and signs