While researching your southern family history, you find that your grandmother had a sister who died fairly young. The symptoms leading up to her death included diarrhea, dermatitis, and dementia. Because the family led a poor, corn-farming existence, you suspect this relative died of
a. scurvy. b. cancer.
c. pellagra. d. beriberi.
Question 2
John is 60 years old and has been experiencing numbness in his hands for the past 3 months. His doctor suspects that John is not producing enough hydrochloric acid and intrinsic factor and encourages him to eat more foods containing vitamin B12 . What is wrong with this suggestion?
a. People missing intrinsic factor cannot digest foods containing vitamin B12 and will develop diarrhea
b. Intrinsic factor is not associated with vitamin B12 and eating more foods containing it would have no effect on John's health
c. It is improbable that a lack of hydrochloric acid production and intrinsic factor are associated with the numbness that John is experiencing
d. Because John has no intrinsic factor, he cannot efficiently utilize vitamin B12 from natural sources and would need a vitamin B12-fortified food or supplement