According to the U.K.'s latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey, the population's intake of basic vitamins and minerals has taken a nosedive over the last decade. The most shocking observation from this study is that basic, readily-available nutrients are not showing up in blood samples like they used to. Vitamin A, fiber, vitamin D, and iron levels are falling steadily across all age groups, in both men and women.
Vitamin A deficiency and measles resurgence
Between 2008 and 2017, the average vitamin A blood concentration fell by four percent every year for children between the ages of 1.5 and 18. The same downward trend was observed in the elderly (65 and older). Vitamin A blood levels dropped an average two percent each year for all other adults (19-64 years). This is deeply concerning because vitamin A levels impact infectious disease duration and severity, including but not limited to: measles. A greater vitamin A level helps fortify the intracellular T-cell response of the immune system. This is the part of the immune system that is already weakened in people who are heavily vaccinated. Vaccine science generates an unsustainable, short-term, allergic, extra-cellular B-cell response, but this augmentation inevitably weakens the response of T cells that work to eliminate viruses within the cells. Plummeting vitamin A levels throughout the population and over-vaccination plays a role in early childhood death and the resurgence of measles and other infectious diseases.
Iron deficiency and anemia
The study also found that iron levels are rapidly falling in women, primarily young girls and women of child-birthing age. Iron deficiency causes birth defects, primarily neural tube defects. Young girls between four and 10 years saw the sharpest decline in iron levels (.2mg/day), which ultimately causes anemia. In 2015, iron deficiency anemia affected up to 1.48 billion people. During the past decade, anemia risk has risen by 19 percent for children between the ages of 11 and 18. Iron deficiency is a global health crisis, resulting in 54,000 deaths annually.
Vitamin D levels, on the other hand, were more likely to fall in young boys. Over a nine-year period, boys between the ages of 11 and 18 suffered a two percent reduction in vitamin D levels -- double the losses experienced by adults during that same time period. Like vitamin A, vitamin D helps build the natural immune system. Due to a lack of sun exposure, it is expected that vitamin D levels fall off during the winter months, but the reduction got worse with each winter season. By the end of the study, nearly a third of adults were at risk from vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D supplements are affordable, readily available, and can help mitigate immune deficiencies caused by indoor, sedentary lifestyles.
Finally, the study found that fiber levels are falling for every age group of children, primarily those between the ages of 4 and 10. Men saw an increase of fiber intake over the past decade, but deficiencies in children could spell health issues as they reach adulthood. The authors of the study recommend that developed nations prioritize the nutritional needs of the population by investing in diverse agriculture, making nutrient-rich foods more affordable and more readily available. Overworked soils are lacking trace minerals such as selenium, chromium, magnesium, and zinc. Monotonous rows of genetically modified corn and soybeans should be replaced with more vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs, and medicinal roots. Reduction of basic vitamins such as A and D in the human diet will inevitably cause greater rates of illness and the resurgence of nutrition-preventable diseases such as measles and pneumonia.
For more on the issue of malnutrition, visit Nutrients.News.
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