Every one of us is aware that the nutrients like minerals and vitamins are very essential for the healthy growth of a person. Zinc is one among the minerals which is very essential for us to be healthy in many aspects.

The negative effects of zinc deficiency:

■ Zinc deficiency delays the growth of bones.
■ It leads to weight loss and weak immune system.
■ It leads to malnutrition and malabsorption of the nutrients.
■ It retards the overall growth and results in dwarfism.
■ Zinc deficiency leads to the lack of sexual development in females and it also delays the puberty in the adolescents.
■ It makes the skin very rough as it reduces the production of collagen.
■ It kills the appetite of a person and leads to malnutrition.
■ It leads to the laziness of mind which results in the poor performance in all the tasks.
■ It also delays the capacity of wound healing in humans.
■ It makes the nails and teeth very fragile. It gives white spots on the nails and discoloration to the teeth.
■ The deficiency of zinc may lead to loss of vision.
■ It causes the poor functioning of the reproductive system.
■ It may lead to sleeplessness and other behavioral problems.
■ It leads to a heavy loss of hair due to the presence of dandruff.
■ The lack of zinc in old people has lead to the inflammation of the prostate.
■ Zinc deficiency leads to the increase in the cholesterol levels in the blood.
■ Lack of zinc leads to the severe pain in the hip and knee joints.
■ Zinc deficiency in children leads to mental retardation, dyslexia and other problems related to the functioning of the brain.

Sources of zinc:

      Zinc is present in various foods such as meat, poultry, dairy products, beans, whole grains, oysters, nuts, peas, eggs, oats, and pumpkin seeds and so on. Consuming these products regularly can make you free of all the above mentioned problems. Our body can absorb only 30 percent of zinc that we take in. The intake of vitamins like A, E, B6 and minerals like magnesium, phosphorus, calcium etc help in the absorption of more zinc in our body. So it would be better if you add these to your daily intake of food. Apart from these vitamins and minerals, you may take the zinc supplements under the guidance of your doctor.