Protein energy malnutrition historical perspective

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Omodamola Aje B.Sc, M.D. [2]

Historical Perspective

• Prior to 1959 it was considered that protein-energy malnutrition (PEM), or protein-calorie malnutrition as it was then called, was attributable principally to dietary deficiency and therefore it could be prevented or treated by dietary measures alone.
• The disease called kwashiorkor in the Ga language of Accra, Ghana means ‘the disease of the deposed baby’. The term signifies that the sickness an elder child may get when a younger one is born.
• In 1932, kwashiorkor was first described by Dr Cicely Williams, working with African children on the Gold Coast.
• Williams identified a relationship between the low-protein maize diet of the children and the occurrence of the syndrome.
• In 1933, classical kwashiorkor was first described in the literature as a ‘well marked syndrome of the deposed infant’.
• In the 1950s kwashiorkor dominated medical research agendas in South Africa and also in the international arena.
• Into the 1970s, nutritionists focused on the development of high protein foods for weaning.