Behavioral Effect On Nutrition - 1583 Words

Having a background in psychology led me to choose a topic that involved a behavioral effect on nutrition. When considering pica as my topic I looked at its relationship to nutrition, as pica is described as the ingestion of â€Å"non-food substances.† (Young et al 2010) With continued research into pica and nutrition, the association of iron deficiency and this disorder became pronounced.. While factors interact to cause iron deficiency, there is incidence of iron deficiency in the vulnerable populations of underdeveloped countries and in population subgroups at risk for incidence of iron deficiency. This is due to increased physiological requirements. It is in the population subgroups where there is a significant relationship between iron†¦show more content†¦(Miao et al., 2015). Pica has also has been found to be present in hundreds of animal species (Miao et al., 2014). Over the years, geophagia has been the most common form of pica observed. It has been as sociated with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, as well as being â€Å"an adaptive behavior, with potential benefits including provision of iron and detoxification of harmful dietary components† (Lumish et al., 2014). In pregnant women, pica behavior has been associated with perinatal and maternal mortality and is more common than previously thought (Horner et al., 1991). â€Å"Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional disorder affecting at least one third of the world’s population.† (Yadav and Chandra, 2011) It is one of the most frequent hematological conditions encountered by clinicians. Iron is needed for hemoglobin and cellular production. (Skikne and Hershko, page 251) Deficiency in iron can manifest itself in anemia of iron deficiency and in tissue iron deficiency, not related to anemia, with the two often coexisting. Iron deficiency is most prevalent in early childhood, in females due to menstruation and especially in pregnant females as â€Å"maternal iron requirements increase substantially to support fetal growth and placental tissue development as well as the increased hemoglobin mass during pregnancy† (Leong and Lonnerdal, 2012). In early childhood, between the ages of 1 to 3, the need for iron