MALNUTRITION AND SUBSEQUENT ISCHEMIC-HEART-DISEASE IN FORMER PRISONERS OF WAR OF WORLD-WAR-II AND THE KOREAN CONFLICT

The harsh treatment of former prisoners of war (POWs) of World War II and the Korean conflict resulted in severe malnutrition. Although rare ly linked to specific long-term medical problems, a specific marker of malnutrition, self-reported lower limb edema (presumably due to a vit amin B deficiency) was associated with a three-fold increase in subseq uent death attributed to ischemic heart disease (IHD) during the follo w-up period from 1967 through 1975. Although there is at present no me dical basis for linking edema, which is perhaps a marker for some unme asured risk factor, to subsequent IHD, this finding may nonetheless ha ve medical implications for the group of former POWs and other populat ions with severe dietary deficiency. It also suggests there may be a n eed to reexamine currently held theories on malnutrition and subsequen t chronic disease.