Mineral Case Study
Period 3-4
Case #1
Mineral Case Study
Domonique has just turned 33 and would say that she lives a rather healthy lifestyle.
Domonique includes much calcium and protein in her diet, because she is an active
individual. She does have a nut allergy however does her best to incorporate smart
dietary choices in her meal selections. She goes running every morning and teaches a
yoga classes in the afternoon with a few of her coworkers. However , lately in the past
few months Dominique has been experiencing joint problems and has grown nervous in
her yoga class due to the fact that she can hear cracking or crunching sounds with
movement. She has grown upset to the fact that she’s gotten to the point where she can
barely reach her full athletic potential because of this problem. Now even when she
even engages in the smallest activities, such as dancing, or even working out in the
gym, she is more likely to experience warmth and redness along with pain and swelling
in the affected joints.As time has began to pass her by, she is atarting to repeatedly
catch sight of these reoccuring symptoms. She would either have a rash in the affected
area, or some mornings it would be hard for her to even move correctly occasionally a
fever and feel generally ill all the time. Domonique doesn’t understand what the problem
is because she thought she had been leading a healthy lifestyle but she now grows
concern as her symptoms are growing worse.
Case #2
Name:
Lacey and Greg got married about a year ago, and they were so excited to have
their first child together. They had just bought a house in Montana, which is perfect for
them since they love to go hiking with their two Golden Retrievers, Max and Ruby. Also
during that year, they have decorated a separate room in their house for a baby, which
they’re looking forward to. They have been trying for a baby since their wedding night,
but sadly, they keep having miscarriages. Not only is Lacey depressed from her
miscarriages, but she is also devastated about the number when she steps on the scale.
Lacey keeps gaining weight even though she goes on hikes everyday with her dogs.
Greg has also noticed the weight gain and joins Lacey on the hikes for support. Greg
has also been worries about Lacey getting lost her hikes, because she has been acting
a little slow mentally. Lucky for Greg, he has lost a total of 20 pounds over the year from
all of the hiking. Different from Lacey, Greg eats whatever he wants.What is wrong with
Lacey? Why is she having miscarriages? What is her vitamin deficiency?
Case #3
Story:
There once was a boy named Cooper, he was not eating properly and he got very
sick. He lost a lot of energy and he could not sleep, he soon later developed Anemia and
he had digestive problems causing him major discomfort. He went to his doctor to find
out what was wrong and his doctor said he needed to eat better. He could have developed
a Neurodegenerative syndrome, that got him really scared. The doctor explained that he
had low copper levels in his body. That was the cause to all the lack of energy and lack of
sleep and Anemia. He also had signs of developing Crohn's disease. So the doctor
prescribed him with some medication to help get his copper levels back up and the doctor
made Cooper go back to his regular diet.
So, Cooper started to eat normally again, he started eating whole grains, nuts, seeds, and
fish to get him better. He took his medication every day, after a while he got better and
was happy again and he felt healthy and great. His digestive problems improved and
eventually went back to normal. Soon, it was like nothing was ever wrong or even
happened to Cooper.
Case #4
‘’Marvin’s soccer experience’’
Marvin was a great soccer player in high school. He has played soccer since he
was 5 years old. His parents put him in soccer tournaments to see if he wanted to
participate in this sport. Marvin really enjoyed it! He found a lifelong love of playing
soccer. Since his first tournament Marvin developed a passion of everything to do with
soccer. As he honed his skills playing soccer he realized that soccer came with some
downfalls. This is a very high contact sport and injuries are very common.This did not
stop Marvin’s passion for wanting to play soccer. Marvin will always play soccer no
matter what because it fulfills him and brings him joy.
Marvin’s soccer season was about to end and he was extremely disappointed
that he would not be able to play till next season. His routine was to hang out with his
friends after school where they would practice their favorite sport. Marvin always
dreamed of being able to play in the “Gold Cup.” His dream came true and he had a lot
of anxiety because his team was going to play real Madrid and if they win then his team
will be able to stay in the “Gold Cup.” The day that Marvin was anticipating finally
arrived. However, he was extremely worried because he wasn’t sure if he could play the
last game due to an injury. Marvin was concerned because he had respiratory issues,
dehydration, weakness, muscle cramps and seizures.
Marvin went with his mother to the doctor to see if everything was alright. He had
not been feeling well since his last game. He was worried about an electrolyte
imbalance. Marvin was correct. The doctor recommended rest and fluids. Marvin knew
that something was not right ever since he started feeling dizzy and began having
seizures and getting muscle cramps. He could not play in the final 'gold cup ' due to his
injury. The Dr. told Marvin that he can’t play soccer for a long time because he needs to
recover from his Magnesium deficiency. Understandably, Marvin was devastated that he
could not participate in the final “Gold Cup” game.
Case #5
The Tale of Stan Beefanhimer
In a galaxy far far away existed Stan Beefanhimer. He lived in the Gandolf galaxy
and he got all the ladies. His muscles protruded out of his chest, his hair flowed with the
wind and his smile was impeccable. One day Stan decided to use his good looks and join
another modeling contest 5 months away. He didn't know what to do to prepare so he just
carried about his daily life. Stan was so prepared for this contest, since he won his last 10
modeling contests. Already knowing he was gonna win, he unwinded slowly, eating
more unhealthy foods, and less vegetables but still keeping his model physique. As
months past, all was well until one morning he noticed his gums were deteriorating, but
he kept on with his daily life style. Then came the day of the contest. He woke up and
casually walked to the mirror as he always did to check himself out. Looked up and down
and all was well, until he went to smile and saw that his lateral incisor was missing!
“What happened?!?” Yelled Stan. He always had pearly whites! What happened to
Stan, and how could he have prevented this?
Case #6
Peter’s Predicament
Peter is a devoted athlete who has been playing lacrosse year long since
he was a young boy. Now in high school playing his second year on varsity,
Peter’s body is accustomed to his hard work. However midway through the
season Peter breaks his leg and is out for the season; his doctor gave him strict
orders to stay in bed and rest. Peter has never taken a break from training and
after his first week of resting his mom noticed that he was so depressed, he didn't
even want to go to his lacrosse game to cheer his team on. Had little to no
energy and was complaining about a headache a lot as well. He also didn’t have
much of an appetite, especially in the morning when he usually eats his favorite
cereal frosted oats, which is very unlike him. He often left school early to go
home to sleep. His friend Cooper recalled Peter complaining about his arms and
fingers feeling numb one day during school. Cooper was becoming concerned
about his friend but didn't know how to help him. What to do???
Case #7
Cassie’s Challenge Case Study
Cassie was an amazing cheerleader at her high school she has been cheerleading
since 5th grade and finally made captain her junior year. Her team has been practicing for
the past week for their upcoming cheer competition and Cassie has been working hard to
perfect her cheers. Cassie also changed her diet during her intense training, which
included no meat or whole grain. When yelling her cheers she noticed she began to
develop a shortness of breath and irregular heartbeat. Her teammates commented on how
cold and pale her hands were and saw the brittleness of her nails. This made Cassie
worried,she was insecure and didn’t know what was wrong with her. After long nights of
cheer Cassie came home and felt terrible and dizzy.
The morning of the cheer competition had finally arrived. She woke up with a
strange craving for ice and swelling of the tongue. Cassie didn’t want to let her friends
down even though she didn’t feel well, so Cassie got dressed and got to school in time for
the bus to the competition. Her cheer friends were excited to see her but, also considered
about her appearance and health. When the bus arrived at the competition, the girls got
off and started to warm up. Cassie was holding back all her pain as she felt the nerves
moving through her body, the girls lined up and started to walk onto the performance
mats. Cassie had huge smile on her face as she began to cheer, after the first cheer left her
lips Cassie felt dizzy and fainted.
Case #8
Patient Zero
On one beautiful summer evening Judy was enjoying a lovely bowl of ice cream.
Unfortunately for Judy this ice cream had to be dairy free because she was lactose
intolerant. She hated it. The ice cream didn’t taste anything like real ice cream and she
even had to give up her favorite meals; Mac n Cheese, grilled cheese, and pizza!!! She
couldn’t enjoy any of these delicious meals.
One day Judy woke up from a deep sleep because she was so itchy. She
couldn’t understand why her body was itchy all of a sudden. She went to the bathroom to
find some lotion thinking it will hydrate her body and make the itch go away. She looked
in the mirror and saw that her face had an unusual amount of acne. She assumed her
acne was because she was getting her period in a few days.
Once her period, a whole week later mind you, she experienced the worst
cramps ever. The pain was so intense, she threw up. She felt extremely sore especially
in her joints. She had to cancel her trip to go hiking with her boyfriend, Ben because of
how terrible she felt. Luckily for her, her boyfriend was a kind gentlemen who came over
and took care of her in her time of need. Thought her period was over she still
experienced the terrible itching and the acne continued to get worst. She even still threw
up every couple of days.
She finally decided to tell her mother, who wasn’t in the story till now because
she was dead and now is a zombie, about how terrible she has been feeling lately, and
her mother took her to the doctors. The doctors ran a few test and they soon discovered
what was causing all these terrible things.
Case #9
Sally is a senior in high school, and she is the star of the field hockey team. She
always had a love for sports because she never did well in school. Sally was always one
step behind the other students even in her beloved sports. Since Sally is one of the
shortest people in her grade she always had to work twice as hard in her athletics. Sally
was always one step behind the other students. Ever since she was a little girl she's had
a high tolerance for pain. Although pain doesn't affect her much, her body has never
healed her wounds quickly or properly. Sally will have open wounds for weeks up to
months on her body. Since she is such a dedicated athlete, she always maintained a
proper and healthy diet. But sometimes ate a little on the heavier side but recently, her
appetite has been non existent. Even when her mother made her favorite dish recently,
she would not touch it at all. The taste was rather disturbing to her and she did not enjoy
it. Sally watched a PETA video in her nutrition class, it emotionally affected her and she
no longer eats meat. Everyday Sally goes home and takes care of her hair to make it
healthier and longer. She is very into being clean and healthy. What mineral would Sally
be deficient in?
Case #10
David was a member of the varsity wrestling team at Scotch Plains Fanwood high school.
Being that next year he would be a senior there were rumors that his coach was thinking
about making him captain. David, heard these rumours and decided to train as hard as
possible in order to insure his position as captain. David knew that the one way to insure
the position was to drop a weight class, that would impress his coach for sure! After
“extensive” research he decided that in order to lose a lot of weight fast he would have to
cut down on the amount of dairy and meat he was eating. David remembered his mom
once telling him that her friends sisters cousins aunt went on a vegan diet and lost 10
pounds in a few weeks! David thought that if he closely emulated his mom's friends
sisters cousins aunts actions that he would have the same luck. Since steak, chicken, red
meat, and dairy contain a lot of fat David thought that with the mixture of intense
workouts everyday his extra weight would melt off.
Half way into the first week David was not himself being that he was
experiencing a lot of anxiety. David was stressing about things he has never stressed
about before. Fortunately, at the end of the week david got the good news he desired!
David lost 3 pounds which gave him the boost he needed to keep going. By the time next
week rolled around David was not as focused and he was always stressed but he didn’t
know from what. To ease his nerves he decided to weigh himself so he could hear some
positive news. To David's surprise when he weighed himself he gained 2 pounds! With
this news David didn’t know what to think, infact, he started to panick. David felt weak
and very light headed so he decided to go to bed early to rest for his wrestling match the
following day.
As David was in the locker room preparing for his match something did not feel
right. Along with intense anxiety david's legs and hands started to go numb. “Could it be
the nerves?” David thought. Although David did not feel his best he decided to fight
through his pain in order to prove to his coach that he was worthy of becoming varsity
captain. Although David's efforts to stick it through he felt as if he was going to fall over.
As david predicted after his opponent made his first move david fell over. When david
tried to get back up he felt so weak and stumbled to his feet! Although the match had just
begun David was out of breath and his joints ached. He just wanted to go home.
Later that day David decided that it was best to visit a doctor. At the doctor's
office his doctor told him that he has a deficiency in a certain mineral.
Case #11
Jared Figueroa the assistant captain of the SPF hockey team has been
experiencing serious pain while on ice. He's been saying that he'd get excessive
amounts of bone pain while practicing and has already broken three bones in the last
couple of months despite not played too aggressively. When we asked about his daily
diet, he said that it’d primarily only ate meat and snack products rather than
fruits/vegetables. Also he doesn't intake much fruit juices either, rather he'd drink lots of
water and soda beverages. As time went on, he had even more serious bone pain and
eventually had to visit an orthopedist. The doctor briefly asks for his situation and then
tells him his results based off the diagnosis. He later went home and took a brief hiatus
from playing Hockey or any intense sports due to his current condition.