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      Imbalanced diet: starvation and deficiency diseases

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can explain the effects on the human body of not consuming enough nutrients.

      Key learning points

      1. Not consuming a balanced diet can lead to ill health.
      2. Body mass index (BMI) is calculated from a person’s height and body mass.
      3. Not consuming enough food can cause BMI to become too low, and eventually lead to starvation.
      4. Deficiency diseases are the result of not consuming enough of a particular nutrient.

      Keywords

      • BMI - Body mass index (BMI) is a measure that compares your weight and height to assess whether they are in a healthy proportion.

      • Starvation - When a person does not receive enough calories for their normal bodily function.

      • Deficiency disease - A disease that occurs due to a lack of essential nutrients in the diet.

      Common misconception

      Malnutrition is all about being too thin.

      Clear statement included to dispel this myth.

      Teacher tip

      Give pupils the opportunity to calculate their own BMI, if they feel comfortable doing so.

      Content guidance

      Depiction or discussion of mental health issues

      Supervision

      Adult supervision required

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
      except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
      (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      A person's overall health is made up of their physical and health.

      Correct Answer: mental, Mental

      Q2.
      Which of these are essential vitamins?

      Correct answer: vitamin A
      Correct answer: vitamin D
      vitamin Y
      vitamin Z

      Q3.
      is a source of building materials to make biomass for growth and repair.

      Correct Answer: Food, food

      Q4.
      Match the key term to the definition.

      Correct Answer:mental health,how you feel, think and act

      how you feel, think and act

      Correct Answer:physical health,the condition of your body

      the condition of your body

      Correct Answer:disease,a persistent harmful deviation from a normal function or behaviour

      a persistent harmful deviation from a normal function or behaviour

      Q5.
      What nutrient in food is needed for growth and repair?

      Correct Answer: Protein, amino acids, protein, Amino acids

      Q6.
      True or false? To be healthy we should eat a diet free from fat.

      True
      Correct answer: False

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      What does BMI stand for?

      Correct answer: body mass index
      body mass indicator
      body maintenance indication

      Q2.
      If a man has a BMI of 24, what category would that put him into for his weight?

      less than 18.5 = underweight
      Correct answer: between 18.5 and 24.9 = healthy weight
      between 30 and 39.9 = obese
      40 or more = severely obese

      Q3.
      How do we calculate BMI?

      body mass ÷ height
      Correct answer: body mass ÷ (height)²
      body mass × height²

      Q4.
      nervosa is a serious psychiatric disease that can lead to starvation.

      Correct Answer: Anorexia , anorexia

      Q5.
      Which two treatments can be used to treat anorexia nervosa?

      Correct answer: talking therapy
      physiotherapy
      Correct answer: supervised weight gain
      swimming

      Q6.
      Match the person to the diet they should eat.

      Correct Answer:builder,high in carbohydrates and healthy fats along with a mix of fruit

      high in carbohydrates and healthy fats along with a mix of fruit

      Correct Answer:child,high in carbohydrates and protein

      high in carbohydrates and protein

      Correct Answer:IT worker,medium amount of carbohydrates, healthy fats, protein and fruit.

      medium amount of carbohydrates, healthy fats, protein and fruit.


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