DSSSB 6 September 2024
Applied Nutrition & Dietetics
Easy
In India, particularly among girls, anaemia is a known issue. Which mineral deficiency causes anemia in humans?
Appeared in: DSSSB 6 September 2024
Explanation
- Iron is a critical component of hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells responsible for oxygen transport.
- A deficiency of iron directly impairs the body's ability to produce sufficient hemoglobin, leading to iron-deficiency anemia.
- This is the most common type of nutritional anemia worldwide and is a significant public health issue in India, especially among adolescent girls and women.
- The body cannot synthesize enough healthy red blood cells without adequate iron, resulting in symptoms like fatigue, weakness, and pallor.
Why Other Options Were Wrong
- Option A: Magnesium deficiency primarily affects neuromuscular and cardiovascular systems, causing symptoms like muscle cramps, weakness, and arrhythmias.
- Option B: While severe zinc deficiency can be associated with anemia, its hallmark signs are growth failure, immune dysfunction, dermatitis (especially around orifices), and delayed wound healing.
- Option D: Calcium is essential for bone mineralization, muscle contraction, and blood clotting. Its deficiency leads to osteoporosis and hypocalcemic tetany.
Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
- Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Mineral Deficiencies and Nutritional Anemia as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
- Iron-deficiency anemia is a major public health concern in India, addressed by national programs like Anemia Mukt Bharat, which focuses on supplementation and screening.
- Nurses play a key role in screening at-risk populations (adolescents, pregnant women), providing dietary counseling, and ensuring compliance with iron-folic acid supplementation.
- Patient education is critical to manage common side effects of iron therapy, such as constipation and GI upset, which are major reasons for non-compliance.
How to Approach the Question
- First, identify the key concepts in the question: 'mineral deficiency' and 'anemia'.
- The question asks for the direct cause of anemia among the given minerals.
- Recall the primary function of each mineral listed in the options.
- Iron is fundamentally linked to 'hemoglobin', the core component of red blood cells that carries oxygen. A lack of iron directly causes anemia.
- Evaluate the other options: Magnesium (nerves/muscles), Zinc (immunity/growth), and Calcium (bones). Their primary deficiency states do not manifest as anemia.
- Therefore, iron is the only logical and correct answer.
Concept Tested & Keywords
- Concept Tested: Mineral Deficiencies and Nutritional Anemia
- Stem keywords: mineral deficiency, anemia, India, girls
- Lead-in keywords: Which
- Clinical cues: High-risk population: girls in India, a group known for high prevalence of anemia.
- Negative lead-in flag: false
Question ID
QCJAGe_GLqRBtKMjg5I-W_
Reference Book
E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 2 — Subpart A (pp 1-232 of 464) p. 179-181
E6 textbook of Applied Biochemistry and Nutrition & DieteticsHarbans Lal (pp 26-464 of 479) p. 371-373
E6 Ghai Essential Pediatrics(pp 26-904 of 913) p. 113-115
Practise the full DSSSB 6 September 2024
Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.
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