kwashiorkor

a type of MALNUTRITION seen especially among children in Africa. It is the result of a deficiency in dietary PROTEIN and foods normally eaten for energy. It occurs when a child is weaned from the breast onto an adult diet that is inadequate, so the child cannot eat enough to obtain sufficient protein. The result is appetite loss, diarrhoea, oedema, anaemia and other conditions caused by, for example, VITAMIN deficiencies. Initially the condition responds well to first-class protein, but it is less straightforward with more prolonged cases.