11 Surprising Signs You Are Not Getting Enough Nutrients (and If You're at Risk)

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSignsCommon DeficienciesWho Is at Risk?Knowing for SurePrevention Tips

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Signs

Common Deficiencies

Who Is at Risk?

Knowing for Sure

Prevention Tips

People experience nutrient deficiencies when they don’t consume enough nutrients from food or when their body has trouble absorbing nutrients. This can lead to symptoms like fatigue, appetite changes, and even heart issues.

1. Unexplained Fatigue

Many nutrient and vitamin deficiencies can cause feelings of fatigue.

Common deficiencies leading to fatigue include:

Eating nutrient-rich foods can help reverse certain deficiencies. Here are some examples:

Supplements can also help reverse deficiencies. Examples include:

Folate and FatigueAccording to experts, fatigue may be the first sign of a folate deficiency.

Folate and Fatigue

According to experts, fatigue may be the first sign of a folate deficiency.

Iron Deficiency (Low Iron)

2. Brittle or Dry Hair

Your hair says a lot about your overall health.

Changes in hair, such as brittle or dry hair, can be a sign of nutrient deficiency. Zinc deficiency in particular is associated with brittle and dry hair.

Zinc-rich foods include:

Supplementation is also said to be effective in reversing zinc deficiency.

3. Ridged or Spoon-Shaped Nails

4. Mouth Problems

Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) deficiency can lead to mouth problems like sore tongue, discolored (magenta) tongue, and painful skin cracks at the corners of the mouth and on the lips.Consuming more meat, fortified products, and dairy products may help reverse vitamin B2 deficiency.

Riboflavin (Vitamin B2): Everything You Should Know

5. Mood and Appetite Changes

Other changes can also occur. A common example includes mood changes like irritability, apathy, and even depression that can accompany nutrient deficiencies, including folate-deficiency anemia and lack of appetite due to zinc deficiency.

What Are the Best Foods for Depression?

6. Severe Hair Loss

Some hair loss is normal, especially with age. However, severe hair loss is a sign of undernutrition.

Several nutrient deficiencies may impact hair growth and can cause severe hair loss. These include:

Supplementation may help, although more research is needed. According to one literature review, hair loss from zinc deficiency can be reversed with oral zinc supplements. Likewise, an omega-6 fatty acid known asarachidonicacid and vitamin E may help promote hair growth.

Diet and Nutrition

7. Wounds That Heal Slowly

Wounds that heal slowly are another sign of nutrient deficiency. People with zinc deficiency may experience slower or delayed wound healing.

Slow wound healing can also be due to deficiencies in vitamins C and K.

The 9 Best Vitamin K Supplements, According to Dietitians

8. Burning Sensation in the Feet or Tongue

If you’re experiencing a burning sensation in your feet or tongue, it could be a sign of vitamin B12 (cobalamin) deficiency.This pain can be mild to severe. You may also experience tingling in your hands and toes.

Causes of Numbness and Tingling

9. Bone Pain

The 7 Best Vitamin D Supplements, According to a Dietitian

10. Irregular Heartbeat

Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with heart arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) and even sudden cardiac death.

To reverse symptoms and improve health outcomes, you can eat more vitamin D-fortified foods. Also, talk to your healthcare provider about taking vitamin D supplements. You can also increase the amount of time spent in the sun. When sunlight hits your skin, it triggers vitamin D synthesis.

When is a Heart Rate Considered Dangerous?

11. Your Night Vision Deteriorates

Vitamin A (retinol) plays a crucial role in vision health, with experts saying deficiency leads to night vision blindness and eventual blindness.

Vitamin A is found in:

Taking high doses (under medical supervision) of vitamin A for several days may reverse deficiency.

What Are Vitamins, and Why Are They Important?

Common Nutrient Deficiencies

Technically, you can be deficient in any nutrient you’re not consuming enough of. Some deficiencies are much more common than others, though.

The most common nutrient deficiencies in the United States are:

Supplements for Bone Health: Essential Vitamins & Minerals

Who’s at a Higher Risk of Becoming Nutrient Deficient?

Crohn’s diseaseandmultiple sclerosisare associated with nutrient deficiency.Eating disordersare also associated with nutritional deficiencies.

How to Recognize Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder

How Can You Know for Sure?

Experts say you cannot rely on signs or symptoms to confirm or rule out nutrient deficiencies. It’s also not something you can self-diagnose. Blood tests can tell you if you’re low or deficient in most nutrients including iron and vitamin B12 and vitamin D.

Consult with your healthcare provider for more information.

You can make choices that help prevent nutrient deficiencies. These include:

Eating Plant-Based Omega-3s May Support Heart Health

Summary

Nutrient deficiencies develop when someone isn’t getting enough of a certain nutrient like a vitamin or mineral. Deficiencies cause health problems and may show up as symptoms like fatigue, pain, or soreness. Some people are more likely than others to experience nutrient deficiencies. Managing and reversing nutrient deficiencies is about eating a nutrient-rich diet, managing associated health conditions, and supplementing, if necessary.

17 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Harvard Health.Could a vitamin or mineral deficiency be behind your fatigue?Harvard Health.The truth about nutrient deficiencies.Drugs.Vitamin B12 injections.Merck Manuals.Folate.Guo EL, Katta R. Diet and hair loss:Effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use.Dermatol Pract Concept.2017;7(1):1-10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01Moiz B.Spoon nails: Still seen in today’s world.Clin Case Rep. 2018;6(3):547-548. doi:10.1002/ccr3.1404Merck Manuals.Riboflavin deficiency.Natural Institutes of Health.Zinc - Health professionals sheet.Pazyar N, Houshmand G, Yaghoobi R, Hemmati AA, Zeineli Z, Ghorbanzadeh B.Wound healing effects of topical Vitamin K: A randomized controlled trial.Indian J Pharmacol. 2019;51(2):88-92. doi:10.4103/ijp.IJP_183_18Ankle and Foot Institute of Texas.Burning feet and B vitamins.Merck Manuals.Vitamin D deficiency.Barsan M, Brata AM, Ismaiel A, Dumitrascu DI, Badulescu AV, Duse TA, Dascalescu S, Popa SL, Grad S, Muresan L, Maerescu CM, Cismaru G, Brata VD.The pathogenesis of cardiac arrhythmias in vitamin D deficiency.Biomedicines. 2022;10(6):1239. do:10.3390/biomedicines10061239Natural Institutes of Health.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Deloughery TG.Iron deficiency anemia.Med Clin North Am. 2017;101(2):319-332. doi:10.1016/j.mcna.2016.09.004Merck Manuals.Vitamin A deficiency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About the second nutrition report.Darnton-Hill I.Public health aspects in the prevention and control of vitamin deficiencies.Current developments in nutrition. 2019;3(9):nzz075. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzz075

17 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Harvard Health.Could a vitamin or mineral deficiency be behind your fatigue?Harvard Health.The truth about nutrient deficiencies.Drugs.Vitamin B12 injections.Merck Manuals.Folate.Guo EL, Katta R. Diet and hair loss:Effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use.Dermatol Pract Concept.2017;7(1):1-10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01Moiz B.Spoon nails: Still seen in today’s world.Clin Case Rep. 2018;6(3):547-548. doi:10.1002/ccr3.1404Merck Manuals.Riboflavin deficiency.Natural Institutes of Health.Zinc - Health professionals sheet.Pazyar N, Houshmand G, Yaghoobi R, Hemmati AA, Zeineli Z, Ghorbanzadeh B.Wound healing effects of topical Vitamin K: A randomized controlled trial.Indian J Pharmacol. 2019;51(2):88-92. doi:10.4103/ijp.IJP_183_18Ankle and Foot Institute of Texas.Burning feet and B vitamins.Merck Manuals.Vitamin D deficiency.Barsan M, Brata AM, Ismaiel A, Dumitrascu DI, Badulescu AV, Duse TA, Dascalescu S, Popa SL, Grad S, Muresan L, Maerescu CM, Cismaru G, Brata VD.The pathogenesis of cardiac arrhythmias in vitamin D deficiency.Biomedicines. 2022;10(6):1239. do:10.3390/biomedicines10061239Natural Institutes of Health.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Deloughery TG.Iron deficiency anemia.Med Clin North Am. 2017;101(2):319-332. doi:10.1016/j.mcna.2016.09.004Merck Manuals.Vitamin A deficiency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About the second nutrition report.Darnton-Hill I.Public health aspects in the prevention and control of vitamin deficiencies.Current developments in nutrition. 2019;3(9):nzz075. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzz075

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Harvard Health.Could a vitamin or mineral deficiency be behind your fatigue?Harvard Health.The truth about nutrient deficiencies.Drugs.Vitamin B12 injections.Merck Manuals.Folate.Guo EL, Katta R. Diet and hair loss:Effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use.Dermatol Pract Concept.2017;7(1):1-10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01Moiz B.Spoon nails: Still seen in today’s world.Clin Case Rep. 2018;6(3):547-548. doi:10.1002/ccr3.1404Merck Manuals.Riboflavin deficiency.Natural Institutes of Health.Zinc - Health professionals sheet.Pazyar N, Houshmand G, Yaghoobi R, Hemmati AA, Zeineli Z, Ghorbanzadeh B.Wound healing effects of topical Vitamin K: A randomized controlled trial.Indian J Pharmacol. 2019;51(2):88-92. doi:10.4103/ijp.IJP_183_18Ankle and Foot Institute of Texas.Burning feet and B vitamins.Merck Manuals.Vitamin D deficiency.Barsan M, Brata AM, Ismaiel A, Dumitrascu DI, Badulescu AV, Duse TA, Dascalescu S, Popa SL, Grad S, Muresan L, Maerescu CM, Cismaru G, Brata VD.The pathogenesis of cardiac arrhythmias in vitamin D deficiency.Biomedicines. 2022;10(6):1239. do:10.3390/biomedicines10061239Natural Institutes of Health.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Deloughery TG.Iron deficiency anemia.Med Clin North Am. 2017;101(2):319-332. doi:10.1016/j.mcna.2016.09.004Merck Manuals.Vitamin A deficiency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About the second nutrition report.Darnton-Hill I.Public health aspects in the prevention and control of vitamin deficiencies.Current developments in nutrition. 2019;3(9):nzz075. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzz075

Harvard Health.Could a vitamin or mineral deficiency be behind your fatigue?

Harvard Health.The truth about nutrient deficiencies.

Drugs.Vitamin B12 injections.

Merck Manuals.Folate.

Guo EL, Katta R. Diet and hair loss:Effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use.Dermatol Pract Concept.2017;7(1):1-10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01

Moiz B.Spoon nails: Still seen in today’s world.Clin Case Rep. 2018;6(3):547-548. doi:10.1002/ccr3.1404

Merck Manuals.Riboflavin deficiency.

Natural Institutes of Health.Zinc - Health professionals sheet.

Pazyar N, Houshmand G, Yaghoobi R, Hemmati AA, Zeineli Z, Ghorbanzadeh B.Wound healing effects of topical Vitamin K: A randomized controlled trial.Indian J Pharmacol. 2019;51(2):88-92. doi:10.4103/ijp.IJP_183_18

Ankle and Foot Institute of Texas.Burning feet and B vitamins.

Merck Manuals.Vitamin D deficiency.

Barsan M, Brata AM, Ismaiel A, Dumitrascu DI, Badulescu AV, Duse TA, Dascalescu S, Popa SL, Grad S, Muresan L, Maerescu CM, Cismaru G, Brata VD.The pathogenesis of cardiac arrhythmias in vitamin D deficiency.Biomedicines. 2022;10(6):1239. do:10.3390/biomedicines10061239

Natural Institutes of Health.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.

Deloughery TG.Iron deficiency anemia.Med Clin North Am. 2017;101(2):319-332. doi:10.1016/j.mcna.2016.09.004

Merck Manuals.Vitamin A deficiency.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About the second nutrition report.

Darnton-Hill I.Public health aspects in the prevention and control of vitamin deficiencies.Current developments in nutrition. 2019;3(9):nzz075. doi:10.1093/cdn/nzz075

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