What Is Vitamin C? Vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid or ascorbate, is an essential water soluble vitamin. Fresh supplies of vitamin C are required every day to perform vital roles throughout the body among which are the production of ...
Read More »Vitamin E Deficiency
What Is Vitamin E? Vitamin E is not a single vitamin but naturally occurs as a fat-soluble vitamin family that consists of at least 8 distinct molecules. These molecules include 4 tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta) and 4 tocotrienols ...
Read More »Amino Acid Deficiency (Essential)
What Are Essential Amino Acids? Amino acids are small molecules, or subunits, that link together in various combinations to make up big, complicated proteins. As such, amino acids are commonly referred to as “the building blocks” of proteins. Q: How ...
Read More »Vitamin D Deficiency
What Is Vitamin D? Vitamin D is the principle regulator of calcium homeostasis (balance) in the body. This “vitamin” is really a prohormone, meaning it acts like a hormone but is not. Vitamin D does, however, contain cholesterol in its molecular ...
Read More »Phosphorus Deficiency
What Is Phosphorus? Phosphorus is an essential mineral present in every cell of the body mostly in the form of phosphate. About 85% of phosphorus is present in bone making up a major component of bone formation. As a component of ...
Read More »Copper Deficiency
What Is Copper Deficiency? Copper is an essential trace element that is required for a number of enzymes which are necessary for normal metabolic function. In the body almost all the copper is present as a component of copper proteins ...
Read More »Muscle Weakness
What Is Muscle Weakness? Muscle weakness is the impaired status of muscle function characterized by decreased or low muscle strength and inability to perform normal work such as lifting a pot off the stove. Q: How do muscles work? A: ...
Read More »Osteomalacic Myopathy
What Is Osteomalacic Myopathy? Osteomalacic myopathy is a major feature of osteomalacia that is characterized by painful muscle weakness involving the thighs and upper arms and hyperreflexia. Q: What is hyperreflexia? A: Hyperreflexia means the action of reflexes is increased. ...
Read More »Rickets
What Is Rickets? Rickets is a disorder of cartilage cell growth and enlargement of epiphyseal growth plates in young children that is characterized by inadequate mineralization of developing cartilage and newly formed bone. The epiphyseal growth plate is located at the ends ...
Read More »Secondary Hyperparathyroidism
What Is Secondary Hyperparathyroidism? Secondary hyperparathyroidism is a parathyroid disorder resulting from hypocalcemia (low blood calcium level) that is characterized by excessive production of parathyroid hormone in the attempt to normalize the low blood calcium by releasing calcium from bone. ...
Read More »Selenium Deficiency
What Is Selenium? Selenium is a mineral that is required by the body in trace amounts for a healthy immune system, normal thyroid function, and antioxidant protection. Selenium is absolutely required in the production of at least 30 selenoproteins in the ...
Read More »Primary Hyperparathyroidism
What Is Primary Hyperparathyroidism? Primary hyperparathyroidism is a parathyroid disorder characterized by excessive secretion of parathyroid hormone by one or more parathyroid glands for more than 6 months. In primary hyperparathyroidism, blood calcium levels are high while phosphorus levels are ...
Read More »Polymyositis: definition
An uncommon autoimmune body-wide connective tissue disease characterized by inflammatory and degeneratory changes in skeletal muscles leading to muscle weakness, wasting, and loss. Click for full description.
Read More »Muscle Weakness: definition
Impaired status of muscle function mainly resulting from nutritional deficiencies including any of these: protein, magnesium, thiamin (B1), niacin (B3), potassium, phosphorus, selenium, and vitamin D, or due to chronic fatigue syndrome or hypoglycemia, and if suddenly, due to hypokalemic rhabdomyolysis. ...
Read More »Multiple Sclerosis: definition
An autoimmune, chronic slowly progressive demyelinating (damage to nerve fibers) disease of the central nervous system characterized by multiple and varied neurologic symptoms and signs such as numbness, muscle weakness and visual disturbances, usually with exacerbations and remissions. Click for full ...
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