Eating exclusively on fries, crisps, sausages and ham sandwiches, a British teenager gradually lost his sight and hearing due to multiple deficiencies. An extreme case which could become more frequent with the increasing consumption of “junk food” in our societies.
It is 2019. M. is 19 years old. The young man, who lives in Bristol, in the southwest of England, no longer has a social life or a job, his mother reports in the newspaper The Independent. His vision has fallen to 20/200 on the Snellen scale, the legal threshold to be considered blind, and he is almost deaf. All this due to an excessive taste for “junk food” which led to serious deficiencies and the irremediable destruction of his optic nerve.
Deficient optic neuropathy caused by vitamin deficiency
Since the age of seven, M. has only eaten five types of food: Pringles crisps, French fries, sausages, or ham with white bread. “ I prepared him good sandwiches with an apple or other fruits but he didn’t want to eat anything. », Despairs his mother. At the age of 14, the young man began to complain of fatigue. A year later, he suddenly lost his hearing and complained of severe vision problems. Doctors perform an MRI and examinations of the eyeseyes but do not find any cause that could explain these symptoms. At 17, M. is completely blind and deaf.
After questioning the patient, the verdict falls: M.’s very restrictive diet has irreparably damaged his optic nerve, a condition called deficiency optic neuropathy caused mainly by nutrient malabsorption, medication overdose or excess alcohol. This deficiency due purely to malnutrition is extremely rare in developed countries, which has delayed the diagnosticdiagnosticdeplore the doctors, who described this extraordinary case in an article in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine published on September 2, 2019. In addition to a vitamin B12 deficiency, the young man suffers from significant deficits in seleniumselenium, coppercopper and vitamin D.
The condition can be cured with vitamin supplementation when taken early enough. For M., it is already too late; the vitamins prescribed to him managed to stop the visual loss but he will never be able to regain normal vision. The patient’s completely normal weight and height contributed to the delay in diagnosis, doctors note. “ I never thought this could happenher mother in fact laments. When we hear about junk foodjunk foodwe generally think ofobesityobesitybut my son has never had a weight problem, he is skinny as a rake. »
A food phobia that appeared in childhood
According to doctors, M. suffers from a real food phobia consisting of avoiding ingesting a certain type of food due to the colorcolorthere texturetexture or appearance, a pathology called ARFID (Avoidant and Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). “ This pathology usually occurs in middle childhood », They explain. Despite the severe symptoms caused by his unbalanced diet, M. has remained unable to change his diet and continues to snack on Pringles for meals. Rich in caloriescalories but poor in nutrientsnutrientsjunk food is the cause of many health problems: cardiovascular illnessescardiovascular illnesses, diabetesdiabetes, increased risk of cancer. Deficiencies of B vitamins, omega-3, magnesiummagnesium or vitamin D can also cause nervous system disorders and osteoporosisosteoporosis premature.
