Final answer:
B) Insufficient protein for blood, bone, and muscle cell development
Growing children experience negative nitrogen balance due to insufficient dietary protein, impacting their overall growth and development, leading to conditions like kwashiorkor and resulting in symptoms such as muscle weakness and developmental delays.
Step-by-step explanation:
Children experience negative nitrogen balance when there is an insufficient supply of dietary proteins required for proper blood, bone, and muscle cell development. This condition is reflected by B) Insufficient protein for blood, bone, and muscle cell development. Negative nitrogen balance indicates that protein intake is not meeting the demands of growth. Forms of severe undernutrition, such as kwashiorkor, manifest in the most serious ways when the diet lacks enough protein, leading to symptoms like muscle weakness, skin problems, and developmental delays. Undernourished children might show signs of wasting, which is loss of muscle and fat, and stunting, which is being too short for their age due to chronic undernutrition.
Protein deficiency in diets can have devastating effects on children's growth and overall health. Keywords such as protein calorie malnutrition or protein energy malnutrition indicate a lack of available amino acids for cell synthesis and growth, leading to negative health outcomes.